Japan Changes Constitutional Stance On Foreign Military Deployment

The govt of Japan has changed its interpretation of the country's constitution on the issue of military deployment abroad:

http://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2014/07/01/japan-defense-initiative-is-a-win-for-all-of-asia

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/japan-approves-larger-military-role-24374924?singlePage=true

The US welcomed the move, as I suspect did a lot of countries in that region.