Tokyo - In an effort to increase readership of its annual defence white paper, Japan's defence ministry plans to issue a version of it as a "manga" comic book.
"We'd like to be able to reach the younger generations, those in their 20s and 30s," a ministry spokesperson said.
She was unable to give further details of what form the comic would take, saying that it was still under production, but added that the ministry hopes to issue it in August.
The 2004 white paper, released on Tuesday, is a weighty tome of 450 pages, most of them crammed to the margins with small print and extensive footnotes in even smaller print.
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Readability appears to be much on the ministry's mind as it aims to win understanding for its programmes from a public long leery of anything hinting at militarism.
"We hope the public reads the report so that we gain their understanding," Defence Minister Shigeru Ishiba was quoted by Kyodo news agency as telling a news conference after the white paper was released.
"We must compile something that is easy to read."
Other moves to increase the white paper's appeal this year, the 50th anniversary of the Japanese military's postwar restructuring, included several pages featuring a look at its uniforms over the last half century, as well as the use of glossy paper and numerous colour photographs.
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