TOKYO: Nationalist prime minister Shinzo Abe is expected Thursday to set out his case for beefing up pacifist Japan’s rules of engagement, in a controversial move he hopes will allow its armed forces to enter battle in defense of allies.

Citing the rise of an increasingly assertive China, Abe will argue that Japan needs to cast off strictures that have prevented the so-called Self Defense Forces from firing a shot in combat since 1945.

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