Article 9 of Japan’s “Peace Constitution” famously prohibits “the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes” and also prohibits the maintenance of military forces and other “war potential.” With the adoption of revisions to Japan’s national security laws in 2015 including authorization of “collective self-defense,” many observers considered Article 9 dead. But the constitution is the supreme law of the land and the words of the constitution that took effect in 1947 have never been changed.