TOKYO — A Japanese government-commissioned panel said in a report to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida that drastic defense buildup including the use of preemptive strike is “indispensable” to counter growing threats in the region.
It called for the public's understanding to bear the financial burden for the defense of the country. Kishida's governing party wants to double Japan's current defense budget to about 10 trillion ($70 billion) in the next five years.
The recommendations in the report, compiled by 10 independent experts and submitted to Kishida on Tuesday, said Japan needs to strengthen its economy to pay for military spending, while reinforcing the arms industry and research and development of dual-use cutting edge technology. Japan should improve commercial infrastructure for military use in an emergency and beef up cybersecurity, it said.
Kishida earlier this year pledged to drastically reinforce Japan's military capability and spending in the face of China's increasingly assertive activities as well as threats from North Korea and Russia. The report will be taken into consideration in the upcoming revision to the national security strategy and key defense guidelines, which will be released later this year ahead of the 2023 budget.
“Reinforcing deterence is the top priority for the government and the governing party,” Kishida said when he met with executives of the governing bloc after receiving the…
