It was also a time of confusion, as many things suddenly appeared to be uncertain due to the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union. Hence there were calls from different quarters to overhaul thoroughly the systems that guided global politics throughout the period of Cold War rivalry. The arrangement for the Eastern Block, the Warsaw Pact, ceased to exist from the moment the Soviet Union was no longer to claim its hegemony over a powerful military block standing firmly against the other alliance in the form of NATO. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization itself was also in a shaky position as the purpose for its existence suddenly became vague, as the enemy against which it was supposed to defend the other half of Europe made it clear that it no longer was willing to get involved in the game.

As for the United nations, the period between late 1980s and early 1990s was a defining moment as many around the world felt that to make the world body a real and vibrant organization capable of serving the purpose for which it was established, there was an urgent need to change and amend thoroughly its structure and functioning. But at the same time, there was little agreement among real players as well as outsiders in world politics on the modality of such changes and also on what really should change. Different quarters started to stress on different aspects of the world body and Japanese policymakers obviously thought it to be the right time to press for their own demand of allowing the country to become a permanent member of the Security Council.

This is how the idea of Japan becoming a permanent Security Council member was born and for the next few years the country was seen trying to convince others about the virtues of allowing Tokyo to play that role.

But it also didn't take much longer for the call of a sweeping reform of the United Nations to die down as the only remaining superpower realized that allowing the UN to play an important role might undermine the superiority that it started to enjoy in global politics as being the most powerful nation on earth. Since then, as the UN was forced to a corner, those who were calling for reform also gradually toned down their voices as they came to realize the futility of such reforms in the changing geo-political situation. For Japan too, there was no choice but to give the demand for a permanent Security Council membership a back seat for the time being.

Meanwhile, as the hocus pocus surrounding the weapons of mass destruction of Saddam Hussein continued under the careful guidance of none other than George W. Bush and his close aides, it became further clear that the powerful nations like the United States would need a UN that would be capable only of serving its interest in times of need. The subsequent resolutions passed at the Security Council allowing the warmongers to use them at their will can be looked easily as to be the lowest point the world body had sunk since the day it came into existence.

But the muddy water that the soldiers of fortune sent to Iraq by the Bush administration eventually found them submerged into, gave a new lease of life to the UN as it is increasingly becoming clear that it is the UN that probably can show a way out of that deadly trap. With such a realization reemerged all those old debates and demands that were so lively discussed during the first half of 1990s.

As Germany and some other nations are already in the field with the renewed call to reactivate the UN, Japan might have thought it to be the right time to resurface its old demand of getting a permanent seat at the Security Council. When the Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi addresses the UN General Assembly on September 21, he will tell the audience that Japan seeks a permanent seat that would allow Tokyo to take more active part in deciding the course of global politics.

Japan is presently the second largest financial contributor of the United Nations after the US. The United Nations depends on Japan for almost 20 percent of its total expenditure and this huge financial stake is what fuels Tokyo's desire to become a more active player in global politics. But not everyone is convinced that the role Japan intends to play by becoming a permanent member of the Security Council is going to be a real useful one and there is no shortage of skeptics at home as well, who are concerned that an expanded role of Japan might eventually mean sacrificing country's war denouncing constitution.

Article 9 of the Japanese constitutions forbids the country to engage in military activities outside the territorial borders of Japan. Although there are some who are willing to get rid of the article to take part more aggressively in overseas missions like that in Iraq, for which specific law was needed to enact to bypass the constitutional bindings, there are also many in Japan who would find it extremely offensive if there is any attempt to revise article 9 of the constitution. Hence Koizumi has to walk on a tight rope as he is set to renew Japan's demand for permanent membership of the UN Security Council. He has already made it clear he will tell the UN gathering that there will be no change in country's pacifist constitution. But this might not please Japan's closest and powerful ally, the United States, as US Secretary of State Colin Powell and his deputy Richard Armitage have said earlier that Japan should review article 9 if it wants permanent membership. Armitage even hinted that article 9 is hindering the Japan-US alliance.

So, for the time being it looks as if by bringing the idea back to the table Japan simply wants to show the world that it has not backed down from its earlier demand. Much in the future will depend on how other interested players act on this specific issue. There is no doubt the goal for Japan and others is a long term one as the reform of the United Nations itself might turn out to be extremely slow and time consuming.