 weapons coupled with the fighting skill of the American soldier stands ready on the alert all over the world to defend this country view the American people against aggression this is the big picture an official television report to the nation from the United States Army now to show you part of the big picture here is sergeant Stuart Queen the people of Japan are famed throughout the world for their unique contribution to the art of self-defense two Japanese words judo and jujitsu are heard wherever individuals learn to defend themselves from violence today we are going to see what the people of Japan have been doing to provide for their collective defense as we watch recent training maneuvers of some Japanese soldiers who are part of what is known appropriately as the Japanese self-defense forces the keynote of Japanese life is tradition this most modern evasion nations is also the land where ancient law and manners are venerated more perhaps than anywhere else in the world to make the dead past an integral part of the living present has always been a unique Japanese gift the men of Japan are warriors for throughout its long history Japan has been an island nation facing across a narrow body of water the colossal land powers of Asia in the past decade this immutable geography has thrust them into the vanguard of the free world struggle against totalitarian imperialism it was not always so scarcely more than 10 years ago Japan was herself reaping the fruits of unsuccessful imperialism this was the heritage left to a defeated frightened people by a small band of ruthless warlords destroyed by the war they themselves had launched with American occupation the Japanese people soon discovered that there are other ways of life and other kinds of armies from the moment of their arrival on the home islands of Japan American forces plunged themselves wholeheartedly into the gigantic task of reconstruction clearly this was a new kind of military occupation thus encouraged the Japanese people themselves soon went to work their vast industrial capacity their capital resources almost demolished they yet retained those assets which had made them for hundreds of years one of the first nations of Asia manpower initiative and high intelligence Japan's industrialists have since the 19th century been mastering the techniques of modern industrial production the war set them back several years but with American help they have been quick to catch up during the post war period Japan's industrial redevelopment was aided immeasurably not only by United States government cooperation but also by technical and investment assistance from some of America's leading industrial concerns in times past the affinity of the Japanese people for modern industrial production served to make theirs the strongest nation in Asia with the redevelopment of industrial capacity the rebirth of Japanese heavy industry this small island nation is again demonstrating that she is unsurpassed in all Asia in knowledge of mass production methods shipbuilding is a major part of Japan's heavy industry its post war revival was essential if Japan were to again possess a merchant fleet to carry her exports to world markets accompanying her industrial and economic reconstruction there took place in Japan what might be called a spiritual reconstruction from his former enemy the Japanese man in the street began to learn what it means to be free to no longer cringe in the presence of authority to see the policemen and the soldier come as friends not as the instruments of tyrannical oppression ends of defeat a new nation was erected it is a nation of free people a happier people a people with new friends since the formal signing of peace in 1952 Japan has emerged as an important ally of the nation's resisting communist expansion in preparation for her return to full sovereignty Japan had begun in 1946 to build the nucleus of a well-organized well-trained national police the science of judo belongs in the repertoire of all good policemen Japan is perhaps the one place where this art comes naturally other phases of their training Japanese police students profited from the experience of skilled American instructors from this small post war police corps was destined to grow the tightly organized and well-drilled Japanese self-defense force a this self-defense force is a modern military organization not the old Japanese army of shaved heads and human subservience but a new army whose members are both soldiers and citizens of a free and democratic nation this unique bayonet drill is part of the training at camp Fuji formed in 1954 as the ground self-defense combined arms school Fuji also provides instruction with artillery and armor for maintenance of equipment is no less important than its use semaphore flags their use at Fuji provides both training and exercise this is pure exercise volleyball one of the many sports at which the Japanese excel 700 miles southwest of Tokyo is camp Kashi here members of the Japanese ground self-defense forces are trained as paratroopers by members of the United States 187th parachute maintenance company the training is a joint operation between the United States and Japanese governments among the United States instructors our career paratroopers with as many as 2 to 300 jumps to their credit paratroops a development of the last war have added a new dimension to military science and tactics with airborne forces operating in cooperation with regular infantry the military commander may now strike at the enemy's rear by means of what soldiers call a vertical envelopment a rain of men and weapons from the sky naturally those who participate in such an operation require a high degree of skill and training the first objective of a paratroop unit is usually an airfield or other spots suitable for glider and airplane landings where additional infantrymen can be flown in and later cargo planes with reinforcing supplies and troops there is more to it than learning to jump from an airplane troops dropped in this manner find themselves spread out over a large area part of their skill consists in their ability to reassemble speedily into organized fighting units the Japanese soldier takes well to paratroop training as indeed he does to nearly all his training the rapid learning ability of the Japanese people is almost proverbial the training period at Kashi which we have here seen lasted two weeks of the 96 students who started the course 92 finished with honors those who failed did so only because of disablement due to minor injuries incurred early in the program man with wings in whatever army belongs to a proud fraternity we see a slightly different kind of military rehearsing American military advisors join members of the general staff of the self-defense forces third and fourth divisions in something known as a paper war a paper war does not as you might expect have anything to do with red tape although that too is an enemy with which all high-ranking officers must someday learn to deal the kind of paper war we are witnessing here is a common device used by military commanders to study tactical and logistical problems a commander's ability to resolve these problems properly and quickly is what will in the end decide whether the courage of his men shall result in victory or merely a futile sacrifice today a paper war is really a matter of paper and wire for communications between headquarters and combat areas are another essential ingredient of success some things are the same in every army the menu may be slightly different but an army still travels or rehearses battles on its stomach this is camp ashegawa it is located on Hokkaido Japan's northernmost home island here we find the second division of the ground self-defense forces northern core among the units in training at ashegawa are the self-defense force engineers or veterans will recognize this immediately as a standard bailey bridge few things test an army's ability in the field to a greater degree than does the need for quick construction of heavy-duty bridges the bailey bridge may be a modern innovation but bridge building itself is no new art in the orient the men of asia were building ingenious bridges long before western nations emerged from primitive barbarism from asia came originally the engineering principal still used in the most common types of modern bridges the suspension bridge and the cantilever also at ashegawa officers of the second signal unit working out a map reading exercise members of the second artillery regiment perform a practical exercise in emplacing and setting up a howitzer the howitzer is a relatively small very mobile artillery piece extremely valuable to front line infantry troops the second division at ashegawa also includes an aviation section this is a demonstration of emergency procedures for sending and receiving messages from ground to air the message is in a metal tube suspended between the two poles another installation of the burgeoning self-defense force was inaugurated early last year in northern hanshu this is kav tragajou residents of the nearby town of sendai turned out to watch the parade and ceremonies conducted in honor of visiting american and japanese officials and for the ceremony were numerous high-ranking japanese officers along with united states generals or lando troxel and herbert vander united states furnished equipment was here in abundance of some thirty thousand on the west coast of the island of Hokkaido to rumoy and their nearby camp come members of the ground self-defense forces for their annual ski drill the troops are another of those units which like para troops seem to constitute a special fraternity within whatever military organization they are apart such training develops a strong feeling of pride among the men nor is their pride wholly unjustified mountain terrain which is the usual destination of the ski trooper is rugged going under the best of conditions in snow and cold weighted down by heavy military equipment only the strong and agile can hope to long survive let alone fight an armed engagement is on which the men are now embarking will last four days and cover intensively every phase of military skiing even simple skiing on the level can be a challenging task as neophyte skiers are constantly discovering the same sliding action of the ski which enables an expert to travel at great speed makes it hard for the beginner to move at all add to the basic problems of skiing the weight of say a machine gun and you have the reason why even an average military skier must be something of an expert which every skier recognizes as the fastest method for climbing a hill on skis and also the most exhausting the name of this technique is derived from the peculiar herringbone pattern formed by the skis on the snow from the crest of the hill a mortar squad will make a straight downhill run and set up its weapon with snow part of the problem is digging down to a firm steady surface for mounting your weapon the mortar is a weapon known universally as the infantryman's personal artillery piece unlike heavier artillery the mortar goes wherever the infantryman goes becomes almost as familiar and is essential to him as his own rifle heavy machine gun squad repeats the same maneuver a straight downhill run on skis followed by rapid emplacement of their weapon it's harder than it looks infantry on skis their mission is what an infantryman's mission has always been to engage the enemy at close quarters and capture or destroy him but fighting on skis requires certain specialized skills tricks of the trade which even an expert skier must learn how many skiers for instance can handle their ski poles and a heavy caliber rifle at the same time the Japanese ground self-defense force is not a large organization but it is a well-trained one ready to serve as the nucleus for a first-class military unit should the need ever arrives these men are receiving the best instruction the Japanese and United States governments jointly can provide here is General Ned D. Moore chief of the Army section of the United States military assistance advisory group selected Japanese officers undergo formal training in service schools in the United States these students return to serve as instructors in their own service schools further many ground self-defense force personnel receive training with US forces in Japan although still receiving US military equipment and dated as necessary by the military assistance advisory group the ground self-defense force is becoming more and more self-sufficient from an obscure start in 1950 the police reserve has been transformed gradually into a more mature military organization the ground self-defense force is a different army from that which paraded through Japanese streets in the days of the old imperial power an integral part of a new and democratic Japan it is an army whose first duty is defending the new found freedom of the ordinary Japanese citizen as someone once remarked the Japanese soldier can march he can shoot and he learns fast the Japanese also have great industrial capacity and scientific know-how they are a valuable friend in the Pacific now this sergeant Stuart Queen inviting you to be with us again next week for another look at the big picture the big picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the army at home and overseas produced by the signal Corps pictorial center presented by the United States Army in cooperation with this station you too can be an important part of the big picture you can proudly serve with the best equipped the best trained the best fighting team in the world today the United States Army