Japanese Armed Forces Cannot Maintain Country's Security - Chief of Staff

MOSCOW, (Sputnik) - The Japanese Self-Defense Forces, with their current capabilities, cannot ensure the country's security in the face of regional and global challenges, Chief of Staff of the Japanese Joint Staff Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida said on Tuesday.

"We cannot maintain Japan's security with our current capabilities," Yoshida told the Nikkei Asia news portal.

He noted that in order to boost the country’s armed forces, the Japanese government approved three defense documents, confirming its plans to increase military spending to 2% of GDP by 2027, among other things.

"There are two things Japan must do. First, we must fundamentally strengthen our defensive capabilities so that we are not underestimated. Second, we need to do what we can to sustain extended deterrence, including through strategies involving US nuclear weapons," Yoshida added.

In late 2022, Japan adopted three key documents on defense and security, namely the National Security Strategy, National Defense Strategy and Defense Plan. In accordance with these documents, government defense spending should be increased from 27.5 trillion yen ($187.8 billion) to 43 trillion yen over the five-year period to be in line with NATO's standard requirement to spend 2% of GDP on the military. On June 16, the Japanese parliament passed legislation on the sources of funding for increased defense spending.