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Japan aims to boost five-year defence spending by 50 per cent, to US$318 billion
- The amount will be 1.5 times the current levels, as Japan eyes defence build-up including the use of pre-emptive strikes
- But with an ageing, declining population already struggling with a bulging national debt, funding the increase will not be easy
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Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday set a new target for military spending over the next five years to 43 trillion yen (US$318 billion), or 1.5 times the current level, as the country seeks defence build-up including the use of pre-emptive strike.
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Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada said Kishida told him and Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki to work on a budget plan to increase Japan’s 2023-2027 military spending by more than 50 per cent from 27.5 trillion yen.
The planned increase is “to firmly secure the necessities to pursue substantial reinforcement” of Japan’s defence, Hamada said.
Kishida’s government is currently finalising a revision of its national security strategy and mid- to long-term defence policies, which would allow the use of pre-emptive strikes in a major shift to Japan’s self-defence-only post-war principle. Critics say pre-emptive strikes could violate Japan’s pacifist constitution. The government says a “strike-back” capability is only for use in case of an imminent enemy attack.
The three key documents and the budget are expected in late December.
Japan has steadily stepped up its international defence role and military spending over the past decade. It aims to double its military budget in the next five to 10 years to about 2 per cent of GDP, citing a Nato standard, as threats from North Korea and China’s territorial assertiveness increase.
Kishida’s governing party wants to double Japan’s annual defence budget to about 10 trillion (US$70 billion), which would make the country the world’s No. 3 military spender after the United States and China.
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