In response to last year's terrorist attacks against the United States, the government's annual defense white paper, released Friday, emphasizes the unstable international security situation and the importance of the Self-Defense Forces in dealing with new types of threats.
The latest edition of the report, compiled by the Defense Agency and approved by the Cabinet on Friday morning, says, "international society has recognized terrorism as what should be called a new threat and people have realized they are living in a new 'age of anxiety' (following Sept. 11)."
The subsequent U.S.-led campaign against terrorism demonstrated "the overwhelming power" of the U.S., but also underscored the importance of international cooperation in dealing with such threats, it says.