Japan eyes ‘game-changing’ military hardware to tackle its manpower shortage

Hypersonic missiles and AI-powered drones are just some of the technologies slated to be developed at the new research centre

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Japanese soldiers walk past a US Patriot missile battery during a troop review in Tokyo. Photo: Reuters

Published: 9:30am, 18 Aug 2024

Japan has announced plans for a new research centre focused on advanced military hardware to boost its defence capabilities amid a chronic manpower shortage and rising regional tensions.

The defence ministry has tasked the research centre with creating “game-changing” weapons, such as hypersonic missiles and drones powered by artificial intelligence capable of navigating blackout conditions, in a bid to transform the country’s military prowess. Systems that use electromagnetic waves to detect submarines will also be explored.

Set to open in October, the centre will operate under the auspices of the ministry’s Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency. Its creation comes at a time of rising geopolitical uncertainty, as Tokyo grows increasingly alarmed by the evolving security threats posed by China, Russia and nuclear-armed North Korea.

Equally troubling for Japan are questions surrounding the reliability of future US administrations to come to the aid of Washington’s allies.

“Japan has to do more for itself,” said Kazuto Suzuki, a professor of science and technology policy at Tokyo University.

“We are aware that the US is our most important ally, but equally that if we do not do enough to protect ourselves then a future US administration might not help us,” he told This Week in Asia. “There has been a shift in our understanding that we cannot depend on the US forever.”