Japan is seeking to ramp up its arsenal of long-range missiles as the country aims to close its "missile gap" with China.
According to the Yomiuri newspaper, defense officials within the country are rapidly moving to acquire various sea and land-based missiles that will be deployed on the Nansei and Kyushu Islands (Japanese Islands that are near Taiwan & China). The move is being done to close Japan’s "missile gap" with China. According to a US Department of Defense analysis, China has 1,900 ground-launched intermediate-range ballistic missiles and 300 intermediate-range cruise missiles capable of striking Japan.
In addition to acquiring new missiles, Japan is also making arrangements to upgrade and extend the range of domestically produced "Type 12" surface-to-ship missiles (increasing their range from 100 to 1,000 kilometers).
This comes after China launched five ballistic missiles over Taiwan and into waters that landed in Japan's exclusive economic zone. China says the launches were in response to Speaker Pelosi‘s visit to Taiwan.
CHINA
