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Liu Zhen

Japan will commission its latest “ship killer” missiles one year earlier than originally planned, its defence ministry said, citing the need to counter regional threats including China’s growing military might.
Details of the upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missile were revealed in the Japanese defence ministry’s annual white paper published earlier this month.
According to the white paper, the upgraded missile had “stood various trials on the ground” and would be ready for deployment next year – 12 months ahead of schedule.
Japan’s hypersonic weapons will also be ready for delivery in 2026, three years after mass production began, the ministry revealed, as the country aims for stronger stand-off and hypersonic missile capabilities.
Japan faced a “severe and complex security environment”, Minister of Defence Minoru Kihara said in the white paper, listing China’s rapid military build up and intensifying naval activities as a primary challenge.
He also vowed to give priority to developing Japan’s stand-off missile capabilities.
“Japan is going to acquire various types of stand-off missiles earlier than originally planned, including Tomahawk missiles and the ground-launched version of upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missiles,” Kihara said.
The white paper included a photo of a prototype of the upgraded missile, which has a low-observable nose and foldable swept-back wings.
While it resembles the US-made AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM), the Japanese weapon has retained the X-shaped tail-fins and air intake on the underside of the fuselage of its original version.
Its extended wings and high-altitude jet engines indicate the upgraded Type-12 would feature a significant increase in range.
The white paper did not reveal its new range, but Japanese media reports earlier said that it would be able to hit targets as far as 900km (about 560 miles) away, and the goal was to extend this reach to 1,200km to 1,500km.
If the 900km range is confirmed, this would mean that an upgraded Type-12 missile fired from the southern end of Japan’s Kyushu island would be able to reach waters near the disputed Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea. The islands are claimed by both China and Japan, which controls them as the Senkakus.
If the range is extended to 1,500km, the missile could even strike targets near northern Taiwan.
A Type-12 unit equipped with the original version missiles has been deployed to Ishigaki, one of the southern Japanese islands closest to Taiwan, according to the ministry.

The Japanese military has already placed a US$2.35 billion purchase order for up to 400 US-made 1,600km-ranged Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles.
Delivery of the Tomahawks has also been brought forward by one year to 2025. This means Japan’s stand-off capabilities will receive a significant boost next year when both the Type-12 and the US-made Tomahawk missiles are added to its arsenal.
Besides the ground-launched upgraded version likely to be introduced next year, Japan will also continue to develop the ship-launched and air-launched variants of the Type-12, and plans to deploy at least 11 units of these missiles, according to the white paper.
Japan has also been working on hyper velocity gliding projectiles (HVGP) and hypersonic missiles since 2018, as part of efforts to strengthen its “capabilities to disrupt and defeat invading forces over long distances, thereby deterring invasion of Japan itself”.
A pre-launch HVGP test was carried out in California on March 23, according to a video published earlier this month by the defence ministry’s Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency.
The video showed that the projectile was launched by a booster from a truck-mounted launcher, “to verify the measurement systems for future launch tests”.
The HVGP, which is still under development, began mass production last year with the aim of starting delivery in 2026.
The current version of the HVGP is for road-mobile launchers but an anti-ship variant – similar to the Tomahawk and JASSMs – is also expected to be on the drawing board.
A separate hypersonic missile project was started last year, “with the aim of starting early mass production”. According to the white paper, the hypersonic missile will have a speed of over Mach 5, and be compatible with all launch platforms – including land, ship and submarine – enabling it to hit both land and sea targets.
Japan’s post-World War II pacifist constitution restricts its possession of offensive capabilities. But the Japan Self-Defence Force has rapidly expanded its attacking arsenal in recent years, citing threats from China, North Korea and Russia.
“Japan will fundamentally reinforce its stand-off defence capabilities to respond from outside the threat zone, including anti-aircraft missiles, against naval vessels and landing forces that invade Japan, including its remote islands,” the white paper said.


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A Type-12 surface-to-ship missile (right) and a Type-3 medium-distance surface-to-air missile seen during a ceremony marking the opening of a Japanese military  garrison on Ishigaki island, in Okinawa prefecture in April 2023.  Photo: Kyodo

Defence Minister Minoru Kihara has vowed to give priority to developing Japan’s stand-off missile capabilities. Photo: Kyodo

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A Japanese military ceremony to mark the deployment of the missiles in Okinawa. Photo: Kyodo

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A Japanese Type-3 medium-distance surface-to-air missile launcher (left) and a Type-12 surface-to-ship missile launcher are seen during a ceremony marking the opening of a new garrison in Okinawa prefecture, southern Japan, this month. Photo: Kyodo

Vessels from the navies of Japan, South Korea and the US, including the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier (centre), sail in formation during a joint naval exercise last week. Photo: South Korea Defence Ministry via AP

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