Japan's defense minister recently made strong statements about Japan's military

Japan's defense minister recently spoke about his country's military. His name is Shinjiro Koizumi. He made very clear statements about Japan.

Koizumi said something important. He said Japan is not becoming a military country. Some people worry that Japan wants a bigger army. But Koizumi says this is wrong. Japan only wants to protect itself. It does not want to attack other countries.

The defense minister also talked about China. He said China has a very large arsenal. An arsenal is a place where weapons are stored. China has many weapons and ships. Koizumi thinks this is a problem. He said China's weapons are very big.

Why does this matter? Many Asian countries watch Japan and China. They want to know if Japan will become more military. They also worry about China. This argument between Japan and China is important for the whole region.

Koizumi's words are some of the strongest Japan has made. Other countries listen carefully to what he says. His statements show what Japan really thinks. Japan wants to be strong. But Japan says it does not want war.

Inspired by reporting from BBC News.