Japan prepares for missile shipments after easing arms export restrictions
Japan said on Friday it would prepare to ship Patriot air defence missiles to the United States after revising its arms export guidelines earlier that day, in the pacifist nation's first major overhaul of such export curbs in nine years.
The announcement comes as Japan, which had long adopted a stance of not allowing exports of deadly weapons, seeks to boost its defence industry amid an increasingly tense security environment in the Indo-Pacific.
«This holds significant meaning in terms of further strengthening the Japan-U.S. alliance.
It will contribute not only to Japan's security but also the peace and stability of the wider Indo-Pacific region,» Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said following the announcement.
Although Japan's new export controls still prevent it from shipping weapons to countries that are at war, it may indirectly benefit Ukraine in its war with Russia as it gives the United States extra capacity to provide military aid to Kyiv.
A Japanese government official, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter, said the missiles would be used to re-stock the U.S. military's arsenal for the safety and security of the Indo-Pacific.
The Patriot system is one of an array of sophisticated air defence units supplied by the West to help Ukraine after Russia invaded.
Under previous rules, Japan could only export components of arms and was prohibited from delivering completed products.
The revised guidelines now allow Tokyo to export completed products to countries where patent holders are based.
Any re-export to third countries would require permission from Tokyo.
Japan produces Patriot missiles under licence from U.S. firms Raytheon and Lockheed Martin.
