Perhaps it was a slip of the tongue or just a simple mistake, but despite Japan¡¯s official view that the Self-Defense Forces¡¯ legal nature makes it different from the militaries of other nations, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe last Friday called the SDF ¡°our military.¡±

What has been widely perceived as a gaffe came during a session of the Upper House Budget Committee, when Abe was speaking about the SDF¡¯s increased frequency of joint training with other countries in recent years.

¡°It has yielded significant results to increase transparency of our military,¡± Abe told the committee, answering a question posed by Yuichi Mayama, a member of Ishin no To (Japan Innovation Party).

Without correcting himself, Abe continued to answer questions during the session.

Article 9 of the Constitution stipulates that ¡°land, sea and air forces as well as other war potential will never be maintained.¡±

Due to the charter, the government has maintained the view that the SDF is a ¡°necessary minimum¡± for defending Japan and that it is not a military ¡ª despite its might as one of the world¡¯s best-equipped contemporary armed forces and the size of the country¡¯s defense budget. Under the Constitution, the SDF is allowed only the minimum use of force to defend the country.

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party wants to recast the SDF as a ¡°national defense force,¡± or kokubogun, according to its draft of a revised Constitution released in 2012.

Abe made another gaffe last Wednesday, saying during an Upper House session that ¡°user fees¡± for the prime minister¡¯s office¡¯s Facebook account are paid for by the government while he pays for his own account, revealing his lack of basic knowledge about social networking services that carry no fees.