Japan is moving forward with the deployment of its first domestically developed long-range missiles, with launchers arriving at an army camp Monday as the country strengthens its offensive capabilities amid rising regional security concerns.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said the upgraded Type-12 land-to-ship missiles will be fully deployed at Camp Kengun in Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, by the end of March.
Early Monday, army vehicles carrying the launchers and related equipment arrived in a highly secretive operation, prompting protests from local residents outside the camp.
Opponents of the deployment criticized the lack of transparency, arguing that stationing the missiles would heighten tensions and make them potential targets for attacks.
Last year, the Defence Ministry moved up the deployment schedule by one year as Japan accelerates military buildup in the southwest amid rising tensions around Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own territory.
Developed and manufactured by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, the upgraded Type-12 missile has a range of roughly 1,000 km, significantly extending the 200-km reach of the original missile and potentially allowing it to reach mainland China.
Later this year, the missiles are also expected to be deployed at Camp Fuji in Shizuoka, west of Tokyo.
Japan has increasingly viewed China as a growing security threat and has bolstered defenses on southwestern islands near the East China Sea. PAC-3 interceptors and midrange surface-to-air missiles have already been deployed on islands including Okinawa, Ishigaki, and Miyako.
Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi stated last month that midrange surface-to-air missiles will be deployed on Yonaguni, Japan’s westernmost island near Taiwan, by March 2031.
Tensions have intensified since Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi indicated soon after taking office that any Chinese military action against Taiwan could justify a Japanese military response.
Takaichi has promised to revise Japan’s security and defense policies by the end of the year and plans to enhance the country’s military with unmanned combat systems and long-range missiles.
Her administration is also preparing to lift restrictions on lethal arms exports in the coming weeks, a move designed to boost Japan’s defense industry and strengthen cooperation with allied nations, according to a proposal submitted by her party and coalition partners.
