Does the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz constitute a "life-and-death crisis" for Japan?

It is reported that Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz. This strait is also a critical point for energy imports for Japan. The Japanese government has previously considered “mining the strait” as a hypothetical example of a “survival crisis situation” for exercising collective self-defense rights. However, this time it will carefully assess the situation.

Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Kihara stated at a press conference on March 2: “At this stage, it has not been determined that this constitutes a significant impact situation based on security-related laws or a survival crisis situation.”

The concept of a survival crisis situation is defined in the security-related laws passed in 2015 during Shinzo Abe’s administration.

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