Japan will acquire 400 Tomahawk missiles of the United States, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced Monday, as the archipelago seeks to increase its defenses against Chinese threats in the region.
“Our country’s plan is (to acquire) 400 units” of these cruise missilesKishida told the budget committee of the lower house of parliament, without elaborating.
A few days ago, the defense minister said that Japan set aside $1.5 billion to buy missiles in the next fiscal yearafter years of cutting back on these types of acquisitions.
The Japanese government submitted in December a great defense reformby which will double the budget of the item to 2% of GDP by 2027, and appointed China as “the biggest strategic challenge” for the security of the country.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has raised fears that the Asian giant will do something similar to Taiwan, an autonomous and democratic island claimed by Beijing.
This is an important turning point for the Japanese archipelago, whose pacifist Constitution, adopted after its defeat in World War II, prohibits it in principle from having a full-fledged army.
In addition, the region is on alert after the launch of numerous strategic cruise missiles by North Koreaa series of provocations by Pyongyang that raises fears of a possible nuclear test for the first time since 2017. Kim Jong-un’s missiles were launched into the Sea of Japan, the official news agency said. KCNA.
After it was approved, the United States considered that Japan’s defense policy reform would “strengthen and modernize” the military alliance with Washington, according to White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
While Japan once called for better ties and cooperation with Russia, Tokyo is now warning that Moscow’s military posture in Asia and cooperation with China are “a major security concern.” Japan joined Western allies in imposing sanctions on Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine, freezing relations deep.
(With information from AFP)
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Source-www.infobae.com