Japan’s Leader Calls on U.N. to Drop ‘Enemy State’ Label

TOKYO—Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called on the United Nations to remove from its charter references to defeated World War II nations as “enemy states,” a term recently weaponized by China and Russia to put pressure on Tokyo over its plans to ramp up spending on defense.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi addressing the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday.Her request, in a speech Tuesday to the United Nations General Assembly, followed a brief summit with President Trump on the sidelines of the U.N. gathering ahead of Trump hosting Chinese leader Xi Jinping for a state visit in Washington.

In addition to U.S.-Japan relations, Takaichi and Trump discussed economic security, according to Japanese officials, a term that encompasses efforts to reduce the two countries’ reliance on Chinese supply chains as Beijing increasingly exploits its control of critical minerals in pursuit of political goals.

Tokyo has been the target of sustained pressure from Beijing for months, after Takaichi said late last year that Japan could get involved in any conflict over Taiwan, a self-ruled island democracy that Beijing says is part of China and has vowed to take by force, if necessary.

China has throttled Japanese firms’ access to rare-earth magnets essential for manufacturing and curtailed the number of tourist flights headed to Japan from China. The economic pressure has been matched by increasing forays by Chinese aircraft and warships close to Japan, and a stream of diplomatic invective invoking Japan’s wartime past. Russia, similarly, has stepped up military drills near Japan and joined China in exhuming the specter of Japan’s wartime militarism to criticize its current defense buildup.

Within that rhetoric have been references to the U.N. charter’s “enemy state” clauses drafted in the aftermath of World War II, referring to defeated Germany and Japan. China has claimed the clauses permit countries to take military action against Japan without seeking U.N. authorization. Russia has argued the clauses invalidate Japan’s territorial claims to the disputed southern Kuril Islands.

In her maiden speech at the U.N., Takaichi said the charter was drafted 81 years ago and the clauses “must be deleted,” given Japan’s contributions to the U.N. over the past seven decades. A 2005 resolution by the U.N. General Assembly resolved to remove the enemy state clauses but has never been acted on, as changing the charter requires the approval of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, which include China and Russia.

“In the 70 years since we became a U.N. Member State, Japan has consistently contributed to the peace and prosperity of the international community as a peace-loving nation, under its exclusively defense-oriented policy,” Takaichi said.

Xi is due to arrive in Washington on Wednesday for a two-day state visit that will be closely watched in Asia. Trump has sown doubts in Asian capitals over the strength of U.S. security commitments to the region’s defense, scolding allies for not spending enough on defense and redeploying U.S. troops and munitions to the Middle East to fight Iran. Officials worry Trump might be tempted to soften U.S. commitments in exchange for a bargain with Xi on trade. U.S. officials say American alliances in Asia are ironclad, but they want allies to take on a bigger role in regional security.

Write to Jason Douglas at jason.douglas@wsj.com