Japan orders Defense spending hike to near russia

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Japan orders Defense spending hike to near russia

The defense spending hike that will see his long-pacifist country's defense budget balloon to near the level of Russia has been ordered by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Kishida instructed ministers to put together a budget of about 43 trillion yen $315 billion for the five-year period beginning in April, Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said Monday. That is up 57% on the 27 trillion yen that was originally budgeted for the current five-year period.

The change of direction for Japan, which has retained a US-drafted pacifist constitution since World War II, comes after the country was shocked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. China's threats towards Taiwan and North Korea's atomic ambitions have lent support for Tokyo to embark on one of its largest military buildups in decades.

A poll conducted by the Yomiuri newspaper found 51% of respondents approved of a hike to more than 40 trillion yen, while 42% disapproved.

The money will be used to buy missiles that are capable of striking military assets in neighboring Russia, China and North Korea. Over the next 10 years, the goal would be to triple the number of military units equipped with ballistic missile interceptors in a southwestern island chain that stretches toward Taiwan, according to a draft of a government document.

The news was met with criticism from China. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a regular news briefing in Beijing on Tuesday that Japan has been sensationalizing regional tensions in an attempt to achieve a military breakthrough.

This is highly dangerous. She said it cannot but put Asian neighbors and the international community on high alert about Japan's commitment to an exclusively defensive policy and peaceful development.

Kishida's increase could lead to Japan leapfrogs countries like Saudi Arabia and France to become the world's fifth largest defense spender and reaches annual spending about level with Russia, according to the 2021 figures provided by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The cash may not go as far as it used to be because of the slump in the yen against the dollar in recent months.

Ministers and ruling Liberal Democratic Party politicians have been wrangled over the extent of the increase, which will put further strain on the finances of the deeply indebted and aging nation.

The premier called for a plan by the end of the year to fund the increase, including spending reforms and the use of non-tax revenues as well as taxes, Hamada said. Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki told reporters on Tuesday that adjustments would be needed to secure the necessary funds for the five-year period.

The government is about to reveal how it plans to use funds in revised national security documents and an annual budget to be unveiled later this month.

Ministers should aim to raise defense spending to 2% of gross domestic product over the same five-year period, according to Kishida. Japan would meet the target set for members, as Japan isn't a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Defense ministry spending and other items, such as research and coastguard funding, are likely to be included in the figure, which has previously been counted separately.