The Japanese Communist Party, which has long regarded the United States as its sworn enemy, has made what appears to be a historic change of its policy stance ¡ª at least for now.

On Thursday JCP Chairman Kazuo Shii, speaking at a news conference in Tokyo, pledged to maintain the Japan-U.S. military alliance if ever opposition parties join forces to form a coalition government whose primary goal is to abolish contentious security legislation enacted last month.

¡°We would maintain our policy to abolish the (Japan-U.S.) security treaty, but a coalition government would ¡®freeze¡¯ this, meaning we would act within the current treaties and laws¡± except for the security legislation, Shii told a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents¡¯ Club of Japan.

Should Japan ever be attacked by a third country, the JCP will approve the mobilization of Self-Defense Forces personnel, Shii also said.

The JCP is now calling on other opposition parties to join forces to abolish the security legislation that will greatly expand the scope of the SDF¡¯s overseas operations.

Other opposition parties have so far been extremely reluctant to form any alliance with the JCP, given the communist dogma in its policy platform, including calls for the abolition of the Japan-U.S. military alliance.

Reactions of other political forces so far have been weak.

On Friday, when asked about the JCP¡¯s about-face, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said he believed the JCP started pushing its new stance only for the sake of election campaigns.

¡°I don¡¯t think (the JCP) has changed much. I think they are saying so just for the sake of an election,¡± he said.

The Democratic Party of Japan and Ishin no To (Japan Innovation Party), the two largest opposition parties, have been reluctant to join forces with the JCP thus far.

¡°This may sound rude to say, but the political hurdle to form a coalition government with the JCP is very high,¡± DPJ President Katsuya Okada told reporters last month.