Japan Beefs Up Philippine Emergency Response Through Self-Defense Forces Assistance japan-forward.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from japan-forward.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
17 February 2021
Author: Yuki Tatsumi, Stimson Center
Japan’s 2021 defence budget is set to be its largest ever, continuing a near decade-long trend set in motion by former prime minister Shinzo Abe. Under Abe’s watch, Japan has increased its defence budget every year since 2005. The uptick in spending has continued since Abe left office in September 2020 last December, the Ministry of Defense released its revised budget request for the 2021 fiscal year totalling approximately 5.3 trillion yen (US$50.2 billion).
This upward trend has at times been sensationalised as a return to militarism, with critics pointing to new capabilities introduced during Abe’s tenure. Recent examples include the indigenous development of long-range surface-to-air missiles and other ‘standoff capabilities’ to replace the cancelled Aegis Ashore missile defence program. The Aegis system will be replaced with destroyers and long-range cruise missiles based on the surface-to-air missiles already
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Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga assumed the mantle of Japanese prime minister amidst growing regional security threats, continuing COVID-19 effects on public health and the economy, a critical financial situation, and lingering structural economic problems. Given the extent of these challenges, one wonders whether to offer Suga condolences rather than congratulations.
Suga’s predecessor, Shinzo Abe, implemented a visionary foreign policy, strengthened Japan’s alliance with the United States, and undertook an increasingly firm security stance against Chinese and North Korean threats. Suga will continue Abe’s policies, but may do so with less enthusiasm for expanding Japan’s regional and global security role. Suga vowed to continue the “Abenomics” strategy to stimulate the economy, but he will have to adapt to undo the dire economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.