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Quick Take | Is China the target of Japan’s record-busting defence budget?
- Tokyo faces myriad threats, from China, North Korea and Russia to cyberattacks on the Summer Olympics
- And Abe’s golf buddy Trump may not always be around to bail Japan out
Reading Time:3 minutes
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Japan’s Ministry of Defence has requested a record 5.32 trillion yen (US$50.5 billion) for the next financial year.
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If approved, this will be the eighth straight year-on-year increase in Tokyo’s defence spending and represents a 1.2 per cent increase over the previous year. So, what’s behind the increase?
To begin with, there is the North Korea factor. Of late, North Korea has been testing a series of missiles at regular intervals. While these are short- and medium-range missiles and have not landed in Japan’s EEZ (exclusive economic zone), the worry for Japan is that these tests have not elicited much of a response from Washington.
That could be both good and bad news. It could mean that Washington does not see these tests by Pyongyang as reason for alarm. But that lack of alarm on America’s behalf may be because while it sees long-range missiles capable of hitting its bases in Guam as a threat, it’s less worried about short-range missiles that can’t reach its territory.
After the talks between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, in Singapore in June 2018, long-range missile tests by Pyongyang stopped. Trump also seems to have been bowled over by the North Korean strongman, whom he last met at the DMZ (demilitarised zone) between North and South Korea.
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Second, is the China factor. Beijing has claims over the Japanese-held Senkaku islands (known as the Diaoyus in China) and in the past Chinese vessels and aircraft have intruded into Japanese territory. In addition, China has been steadfastly behind North Korea, though under pressure from the United States and other nations, it has had to obey UN sanctions on Pyongyang. While Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited China last October, the territorial issue is a major issue of divergence in China-Japan relations.
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