Japan Unveils Massive Military Budget, More F-35s, Destroyers and Artificial Intelligence

This story first appeared in Warrior Maven, a fellow Military Content Group website. 

Japan will begin the third year of a military buildup with another record defense budget as it seeks to counter growing threats from China, Russia and North Korea.

The defense ministry has asked for $58.1 billion for the fiscal year that begins next April, earmarking a large chunk of that for spending on artificial intelligence, air, sea, and land drones, and an extra Aegis-class destroyer.

Tokyo also wants to develop and build its own stand-off missiles that would be capable of striking back at targets on enemy soil. And funds have been requested for a satellite network that could track next-generation hypersonic missiles.

Meanwhile, the budget also includes money for eight more US-made F-35A joint strike fighters and three more F-35B multirole fighters.

There’s also money dedicated to the creation of a joint headquarters aimed at unifying the command center the ground, naval and air forces of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces.

“Traditionally, the three branches have not always worked well together, but the money that is now being invested in bringing them together shows its importance. This could make or break the SDF,” said Ryo Hinata-Tamaguchi, associate professor at Tokyo International University’s Institute for International Strategy, in an interview with This Week in Asia.

All this is part of a five year plan that calls for spending $297 billion, making Japan the world’s third largest military spending after the US and China. If the Finance Ministry approves the request as expected, it would be the 11th straight year that Japan’s defense budget has set a record high.

Japan has pledged to boost its spending on defense to two percent of gross domestic product after it had been capped at one percent for four decades.

All this represents a sea change for Japan. The country demilitarized after World War II and its constitution renounces war and forbids Japan from maintaining an army, navy or air force. Force is allowed for defensive purposes only – hence the creation of the Self-Defense Forces.

But in December, 2022, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida gave the go-ahead to proposals that would give Japan the right to strike other countries. Kishida said the Japanese must keep up with advances in missile technology. “In such a severe environment, counterstrike capability, which can deter an attack or force an enemy to stop one, is a capability which will become increasingly vital,” he said.

In July, Japan’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced it was acquiring US-made cruise missiles that will turn the F-15J from a pure fighter jet into a fighter-bomber with deep-strike, stand-off capability.

Japan is buying 50 of Lockheed Martin’s AGM-158B Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile Extended Range (JASSM-ER). According to Forbes, the MoD will upgrade 68 single-seat F-15s to carry the missiles. It’s possible that 34 of Japan’s two-seat F-15s – similar to the US F-15E Strike Eagle – also could be modified.

Still, Japan has a personnel issue – not surprising in a country with an aging and shrinking popular. Last year, the SDF hit only 50 percent of its recruiting target of almost 20,000.