Test paragraph 7

Japan’s exposure runs deeper than the gasoline price shock. Middle Eastern trade route disruption has already reduced Japanese exports of automobiles, machinery, and manufactured goods to the region. Infrastructure projects in Gulf states involving Japanese firms have been suspended. Financial markets have imposed additional costs through sustained downward pressure on the yen. Most significantly, the war has forced a painful reassessment of Japan’s defense posture: with US forces heavily committed to the Middle East, the scenario of a simultaneous East Asian crisis is no longer theoretical. Japan can no longer assume that American attention and military assets will be available on demand if a crisis erupts closer to home.