Why does Japan spend so much on defense?

(Baonghean) - The Japanese Cabinet on December 22 voted to approve a defense budget of up to 5.19 trillion yen (46 billion USD), a record high for the 2018 fiscal year.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Finance Minister Taro Aso (right) after a meeting to approve a record defense budget for 2018.

After Pyongyang detonated its sixth nuclear bomb and launched a new intercontinental ballistic missile in recent months, Tokyo plans to buy more ballistic missiles and for the first time buy long-range missiles.

It is known that the largest expenditure is 137 billion yen for strengthening defense capabilities to deal with missile threats from North Korea.

The money will be used to purchase the SM-3 Block IIA long-range interceptor system, which can intercept ballistic missiles in space, upgrade Patriot missile batteries and prepare for the deployment of two ground-based radars for the Aegis Ashore missile defense system.

Japan will also spend 2.2 billion yen to begin receiving medium-range air-to-ground cruise missiles that can strike targets in North Korea, as a deterrent to Pyongyang.

279 billion yen will be allocated to purchase defense equipment through the US Foreign Military Sales program, up 15 percent from fiscal 2017 and more than double that of fiscal 2014.

Despite increased defense spending, military spending in Japan remains constrained by social security requirements for an aging population and Japanese support for pacifism.

"It is important that we have state-of-the-art equipment with sufficient capabilities to strengthen our defense," Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera said.

The overall budget for the year that began in April rose 1.3%, the sixth straight increase. The defense budget has risen about 10% since Mr. Abe took office in 2012 and accounts for about 1% of the economy, far below the 3.3% in the United States.

However, most of the defense budget is used to purchase American military technology, in reality Japan has not shown remarkable progress in the field of its own national defense and security.

Japan's spending on mostly US military equipment means Japanese planners are forced to halt domestic defense programs, such as building the advanced F-3 stealth fighter.

Nhat Minh

(According to Washington Post)