Japan is preparing to deploy the first batch of domestically developed long-range missiles, sending launchers to a military camp on Monday, as the country builds up its offensive capabilities in response to growing challenges in the region, UNN reports with reference to AP.
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Modernized Type-12 surface-to-ship missiles will be deployed at the Kengun camp in the southwestern Kumamoto prefecture by the end of March, completing the deployment process, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara, without elaborating.
Military vehicles with launchers and other equipment arrived after midnight as part of a highly secretive operation that has been criticized by local residents. Dozens of people stood outside the camp, shouting "Stop the deployment of long-range missiles!" and holding banners with protest slogans.
Opponents complain about the lack of transparency and say that the deployment will instead escalate tensions and make the missiles a target for attacks.
"The prefecture was never notified," Kumamoto Governor Takashi Kimura told reporters on Monday. "It is extremely disappointing that we learned about this from media reports."
Last year, the Ministry of Defense accelerated the missile deployment timeline by one year, as Japan accelerates its military buildup in the southwestern region amid escalating tensions around Taiwan, a self-governing island that Beijing considers its territory.
The modernized Type-12 missile, developed and manufactured by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, has a range of about 1,000 kilometers and can reach mainland China, significantly exceeding the original missile's range of 200 kilometers.
It will be deployed at Camp Fuji in Shizuoka, west of Tokyo, later this year.
Japan considers China a growing security threat and is building up its military presence on the southwestern islands near the East China Sea. Japan has deployed PAC-3 interceptors and medium-range anti-aircraft missiles on many islands, including Okinawa, Ishigaki, and Miyako.
Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said last month that Japan would deploy medium-range anti-aircraft missiles on Japan's westernmost island, Yonaguni, east of Taiwan, by March 2031.
Tensions further escalated after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's statement shortly after taking office that any Chinese military action against Taiwan could be the basis for a Japanese military response.
Takaichi has pledged to review security and defense policy by the end of the year and aims to further strengthen Japan's armed forces with unmanned combat vehicles and long-range missiles.
Her government also intends to lift restrictions on the export of lethal weapons in the coming weeks to promote the development of Japan's defense industry and cooperation with friendly countries, based on a proposal recently submitted by her party and its ruling coalition partner.