Recommendations for Strengthening Defense: Time to Put New Options on The Table

Editorial

15:00 JST, September 29, 2025

As military tensions are rising in East Asia, the recommendations can be said to call for exploring ways to strengthen the nation’s defense capabilities without ruling out any options.

The government must clarify the relevant issues and utilize them in discussions on new security policies.

An expert panel of the Defense Ministry has compiled a set of recommendations regarding the strengthening of the nation’s defense.

Under a plan decided by the government in 2022, the total defense budget for the period between fiscal 2023 to fiscal 2027 amounts to ¥43 trillion. A key feature of the recommendations is that they propose further developing the existing plan in light of the rapidly changing international situation.

China is bolstering its nuclear capabilities, with intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) capable of carrying nuclear warheads and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) as the pillars of its nuclear arsenal. Military cooperation between Russia and North Korea also demands vigilance.

The panel’s emphasis that the cooperation between China, North Korea and Russia is “in a different dimension” compared to 2022 when Japan decided to strengthen its defense capabilities is appropriate.

One measure the panel proposed for defense enhancement is introducing submarines using “next-generation power.” The panel is said to have nuclear submarines in mind.

Because the 22 submarines operated by the Maritime Self-Defense Force are primarily powered by diesel engines, they need to surface periodically for air, which limits their submerged hours and maneuverability. Nuclear submarines can dispel these disadvantages.

However, the hurdles to introducing them are high. The Atomic Energy Basic Law restricts the use of nuclear energy to “peaceful purposes.” Therefore, the government maintains a position that “possessing nuclear submarines is difficult” under the current legal framework.

Nonetheless, with China and Russia routinely operating nuclear submarines near Japan, can the nation continue with this conventional stance? To enhance deterrence, shouldn’t the government consider possessing such submarines, including through legal revision?

Furthermore, to improve combat sustainability, establishing a domestic system for producing and procuring defense equipment is crucial.

The expert panel also proposed establishing state-run factories. The aim is for the government to set up manufacturing facilities for ammunition and other items, using these as bases to encourage small and midsize companies to enter the defense industry.

The recommendations also called for the consideration of relaxing export requirements for defense equipment. Currently, equipment cannot be exported unless it falls into one of five categories, such as rescue, transport or surveillance.

Development costs of equipment such as fighter jets tend to be high, leading to an increase in international joint development projects. Exports to third countries after completion are also becoming common.

Under these circumstances, if Japan alone imposes export restrictions, it will end up providing its technological expertise without any returns. A mindset of linking export expansion of defense equipment to economic growth is also necessary.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Sept. 29, 2025)