MOSCOW, March 31. /TASS/. Japan has deployed long-range missiles to pose a military threat primarily to China, Alexander Stepanov, a military expert at the Institute of Law and National Security at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, told TASS.
On March 31, Japan announced the deployment of long-range missiles to two bases of its Ground Self-Defense Force – in the southwestern prefecture of Kumamoto and in Shizuoka Prefecture, neighboring Tokyo. Thus, for the first time, Japan have gained the retaliatory strike capability to strike missile bases and other enemy targets on their territory.
"Japan has been consistently developing a legal basis for deploying such offensive systems. Recent changes to Japan’s national security strategy introduced the new term 'retaliatory strike,' which entails launching precision weapons against launchers deployed on a potential enemy’s territory. In other words, de facto, Japanese regulations currently allow for a first strike within the already offensive concept of their national security strategy. And the Japanese are gradually transitioning from self-defense forces to a tool for military power projection, primarily against the People’s Republic of China," Stepanov said.
The expert noted that, since 2023, Japan has been deploying Type 12 high-precision missile systems with Type 2 glide vehicles, which have a range of up to 1,000 kilometers and are anti-ship missiles. Thus, Japan can attack the Chinese navy, primarily in the Taiwan Strait.
According to him, the Japanese concept follows the logic of increasing offensive precision weapons. The deployment of such systems is planned for seven missile regiments from Hokkaido to Okinawa. Mass production is largely ensured by technological support from the American military-industrial complex, which is the main technological donor and provides a broad format for cooperation with the Japanese defense industry not only in the context of technology transfer, but also in the expansion of the production base itself.