Japan to Export Frigates to Australia: Use Joint Development to Strengthen Foundations of Defense Industry

Editorial

14:24 JST, August 7, 2025

The high-tech capabilities of a Japanese frigate, equipped with a variety of functions such as anti-ship and antiaircraft capabilities and operable by a small number of personnel, seem to have been appreciated.

It is hoped that the first joint defense development project between Japan and Australia will be utilized to strengthen systems for safeguarding maritime security and foster the defense industry.

The Australian government has announced that it will accept Japan’s proposal regarding a new model of frigates that the Australian navy plans to introduce. The two countries will jointly develop a vessel with enhanced capabilities based on the Mogami-class frigate manufactured by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. for the Maritime Self-Defense Force.

Australia plans to introduce 11 vessels with a 2030 start of operations in mind. The first three vessels will be built in Japan before construction is transferred to Australia for the remaining eight vessels.

Australia narrowed down its candidates to Japanese and German manufacturers in autumn last year and since then has held discussions on which to choose. Australia ultimately chose Japan’s proposal because it attached importance to such points as Japan’s model being operable with a crew of 90, about half the number required for comparable conventional vessels, mainly thanks to the digitalization of instruments. The Australian military is reportedly facing a serious shortage of personnel.

Australia is rushing to enhance its naval capabilities due to a sense of caution about China. In February, the Chinese military conducted live-fire training exercises in waters near Australia. China is also deepening security cooperation with Pacific island nations.

The waters connecting Japan and Australia are important maritime transport routes for both countries. The waters around the small island nations can be said to be a strategically important area for Australia. China’s behavior, as if it is trying to bring these waters under its influence, is unacceptable.

The MSDF also plans to eventually have a total of 24 Mogami-class frigates. Use of the same vessels by Japan and Australia and improvement of mutual operational capabilities will effectively help deter China’s activities.

There remain issues to be resolved in the joint development plan. Australia is said to want to equip its new frigates with U.S.-made cruise missiles. This will require construction in which the hulls are modified.

The Japanese side also will need to smoothly transfer technology to Australian engineers. Japan must make steady preparations for a formal contract to be concluded early next year.

This is the first time Japan will export large-scale military equipment. For this reason, some may view this as a shift in the nation’s postwar arms export policy, but that view is mistaken.

In 1976, the Cabinet of then Prime Minister Takeo Miki decided on a de facto total ban on arms exports. Before then, Japan allowed exports in a limited manner under the Three Principles on Arms Exports established in 1967, which prohibited exports to countries such as those involved in conflicts.

In 2014, the government established the Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and Technology, marking a shift toward exports with certain conditions. With an increasingly severe security environment, this is an era when it has become necessary to jointly develop equipment and deepen defense cooperation with friendly countries.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Aug. 7, 2025)