This week has been a watershed in Japan’s defense modernization. The Self-Defense Forces deployed long-range missiles to a military base, the first time that the country has adopted offensive strike capabilities. This is a crucial step in the evolution of Japan’s military posture and reflects changes within and outside the country. While necessary, it demands a new strategic mindset, one that is anticipated by the new national security documents that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has promised, but is in fact much more.
Japan has for some time debated the acquisition and deployment of “strike capabilities,” most typically long-range missiles that can hit adversaries from a considerable distance. These weapons can be used to hit enemy bases at home or those forces when they have been forward deployed, even though they remain some distance from Japan. The government agreed to do so in 2022, and that determination was made clear in the National Defense Strategy published that year.
This week, the Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) deployed at Camp Kengun in Kumamoto long-range missiles that can reach targets up to 1,000 km away. That range will allow them to hit bases in mainland China. They also would be able to hit almost any target within North Korea. At the same time, Japan deployed hyper velocity gliding projectiles (HVGP) to Camp Fuji near Gotemba in Shizuoka Prefecture. HVGPs are launched from the ground and can travel hundreds of kilometers at supersonic speeds while flying in irregular trajectories, which makes them hard to intercept. As Jesse Johnson explained in his analysis this week, additional deployments are expected.
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