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SDF

Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 18, 2022
It’s up to Kishida to achieve Abe’s great unrealized dream
An Upper House election victory may bolster the premier’s ability to make hard calls. He should start with Japan’s military.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 18, 2022
Kishida risks political fight with vow to take up Abe’s legacy
Any change to the country’s pacifist Constitution is likely years away, even though the ruling coalition won enough seats in the July 10 Upper House election to start the process.
JAPAN
Jul 17, 2022
40% of Self-Defense Forces facilities awaiting seismic upgrades
Of the 23,254 SDF buildings, storehouses, air traffic control towers and other facilities, 9,875 were constructed under the old seismic standards.
JAPAN
Jul 14, 2022
Japan’s MSDF deploys new frigates with labor-saving features
Officials hope that the Mogami-class vessels will contribute to strengthening Japan’s defense capacity, while at the same time promoting work-style reform.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jul 11, 2022
Constitutional revision inches closer in Japan, but actual change still far off
Divisions over what aspects to revise and more pressing political issues for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida could delay change to the top law.
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2022
Russian warships travel between far-flung Okinawan islands
The announcement was the first time that Japan’s Defense Ministry revealed that Russian Navy vessels had passed through the waterway between Yonaguni and Iriomote Islands.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 16, 2022
Japan hosts military symposium that U.S. hopes will help contain China
The Pacific Amphibious Leaders Symposium comes as Tokyo looks to take on a bigger regional security role to counter China, North Korea and Russia.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 10, 2022
Will Japan raise defense spending to 2% of GDP?
Some in Japan believe it is time to increase the defense budget to 2% of gross domestic product, similar to NATO.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 13, 2022
On Okinawa’s Miyako Island, residents cast a wary eye toward China
Missiles deployed there, meant to target Chinese ships sailing in and out the Western Pacific, are the closest such weapons Japan has to China.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 11, 2022
Making the case for NATO Indo-Pacific cooperation
Shifts in the balance of power from the U.S. to China, slowing world growth and increasing income inequality have changed the calculus of war and peace.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 5, 2022
Chinese aircraft carrier conducts training with fighters and helicopters in Western Pacific
The drills in waters that are closely monitored by Japan were likely intended to check military activities in the same area by the U.S., Japan and others.
JAPAN
May 3, 2022
China sends flotilla led by aircraft carrier near Okinawa
The Chinese ships’ passage near Okinawa Prefecture and military exercises in the Pacific are likely intended to check activities in the area by the U.S., Japan and others.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 26, 2022
Russia warns Japan over joint military exercises with U.S.
A top official in Moscow said the country would take ‘retaliatory measures’ if the MSDF and U.S. Navy expanded drills near Russian territory.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 15, 2022
Tokyo beefs up intelligence-gathering after Russian subs test-fire cruise missiles in Sea of Japan
The Russian submarines launched the advanced Kalibr cruise missiles — the same weapons used in Ukraine — from submerged positions, successfully hitting a target representing an enemy vessel.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Apr 14, 2022
Japan at crossroads as stage set for dramatic rethink of defense policy
While a push by Abe to dispel taboos over nuclear weapons is unlikely to come to fruition, he may have laid the foundation for a change to Japan’s defense-oriented security strategy.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 7, 2022
Japan needs a Taiwan contingency plan — and fast
In Japan, there is a new senior-level willingness to more directly align the national interests with protecting Taiwanese security.
JAPAN
Mar 17, 2022
Russian ships seen in Japan strait may be carrying troops to Ukraine
Pictures of the amphibious transports, typically used for landing expeditionary forces ashore, showed what appeared to be military trucks loaded onto the deck of one of the vessels.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 16, 2022
U.S. begins flying Japanese nonlethal military aid to Ukraine
The move marks the first time an American aircraft has carried Japanese Self-Defense Forces gear to another country.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Mar 4, 2022
How Germany’s historic shift on military spending could affect Japan’s defense plans
Berlin’s about-face on its modest defense budget, which immediately followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has already begun to re-energize the issue of spending in Tokyo.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 2, 2022
Dozens volunteer to fight for Ukraine in pacifist Japan
As of Tuesday, 70 Japanese men — including 50 former members of the Self-Defense Forces and two veterans of the French Foreign Legion — had applied to be volunteers, the report said.

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