Japan said it would embark on an unimaginable $320 billion military buildup to equip missiles capable of striking China and prepare for a protracted conflict as regional tensions and a Russian invasion of Ukraine stoke fears of war .
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government is concerned that Russia is setting a precedent by encouraging China to take control of Taiwan, threatening nearby Japanese islands, cutting off supplies of advanced semiconductors and potentially choking shipping lanes supplying the Middle East .
Japan’s post-World War II constitution did not formally recognize the military and limited them to a nominal capacity for self-defense.
In its comprehensive five-year plan and revised national security strategy, Fumio Kishida’s government said Friday that Japan would also stockpile spare parts and other munitions, strengthen logistics, develop cyber warfare capabilities, and move closer to the United States and other other like-minded nations. cooperation in order to deter threats to the established international order.
“The Russian invasion of Ukraine has grossly violated the law prohibiting the use of force and has shaken the foundations of the international order,” the Japanese government said in a national security document.
Fumio Kishida’s government believes that “China’s strategic challenge is the greatest challenge Japan has ever faced.”
third largest military spender
Opinion polls show that, unthinkable under past administrations, the rapid arming of Japan – which already has US troops, including carrier strike groups and maritime expeditionary forces – enjoys majority support, with some polls which show that the support rate is as high as 70%.
Kishida’s plan would double defense spending to about 2 percent of gross domestic product over the next five years and increase the defense ministry’s share to about one-tenth of all government spending.
With the current budget, it would also make Japan the third largest military investor in the world, after the US and China.
The five-year spending roadmap does not provide a detailed plan for how the Kishida government will pay as lawmakers from the ruling Liberal Democrats continue to debate whether to raise taxes or borrow money.
“Totally defense oriented”
The money will fund programs that include acquiring what Japan calls a “counterattack capability” — the ability to target threats at the country’s launch sites.
The documents warn that Japan’s current missile interception system is no longer sufficient and that “counter-strike capabilities are needed.”
While the Japanese government has long suggested that the constitution permit counterattacks to neutralize enemy attacks, there has been little interest in granting such a capability.
That has changed as China’s military power continues to grow and North Korea has launched record missile launches in recent months, including on Japanese territory.
However, acknowledging the sensitivity of the matter, the documents ruled out pre-emptive strikes and insisted that Japan be engaged in a “wholly defense-oriented policy”.
Japan’s rhetoric on relations with China and Russia has been considerably harsher.
The strategy document previously said that Japan was seeking a “mutually beneficial strategic partnership” with Beijing, a phrase that has been removed from the update.
Instead, Japan hinted at a “constructive and stable relationship” and better communication.
China’s foreign ministry on Friday urged Japan to “reflect on its policies”.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters, “The defense policy document that Japan has issued ignores the facts, deviates from Japan’s commitment to bilateral relations and the consensus between China and Japan and continue to discredit China.”
