China’s commissioning of its most advanced aircraft carrier yet raises the costs for Tokyo and delivers a warning to the Japan-U.S. alliance that it can maintain a continuous presence in the Western Pacific. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/11/11/japan/china-new-aircraft-carrier-japan/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #china #defense #pla #chinajapanrelations #sdf #defenseministry #taiwan #usmilitary
Nuclear-armed North Korea fired off an unidentified ballistic missile on Friday, the Defense Ministry in Tokyo said, with the missile apparently landing outside Japan's exclusive economic zone. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/11/07/japan/north-korea-missile-november-7/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #northkorea #southkorea #defense #defenseministry #missiles #nuclearweapons #sanaetakaichi
Members of the Ground Self-Defense Force were dispatched to Akita Prefecture to assist with bear control as the number of attacks and subsequent fatalities continue to rise in Japan. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/11/05/japan/gsdf-bear-akita-deployed/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #bears #animals #akita #sdf #gsdf #defenseministry #shinjirokoizumi #kentasuzuki
The Defense Ministry will begin a phased deployment of long-range standoff missiles capable of striking from outside an enemy's range. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/11/05/japan/long-range-standoff-missiles/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #defenseministry #missiles #localgovernment
Defense chief Shijiro Koizumi used a series of meetings during a regional summit to push for deepened cooperation with partners while expressing concern to his Chinese counterpart over military moves near Japan. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/11/02/japan/politics/koizumi-defense-ministers-china-asean/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #shinjirokoizumi #defense #defenseministry #china #chinajapanrelations #pla #eastchinasea #senkakus #budgets #sdf
The governor of Akita Prefecture asked the Defense Ministry on Tuesday to send in Self-Defense Forces personnel to help deal with a "truly dire" spate of deadly bear attacks. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/28/japan/akita-governor-sdf-bears/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #akita #kentasuzuki #bears #sdf #defenseministry #shinjirokoizumi
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will make a stop in Japan during a visit to the Indo-Pacific region this week, during which he is scheduled to meet Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi for talks. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/27/japan/politics/us-defense-chief-japan-visit/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #petehegseth #shinjirokoizumi #usjapanrelations #defense #defenseministry
Japan said it scrambled jets Friday to monitor Russian warplanes, including strategic bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons, which had flown along the edge of Japanese airspace up its coast. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/25/japan/japan-sdf-russian-bombers/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #russia #russiajapanrelations #defense #defenseministry #russiaukrainewar #sdf
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s picks for Japan’s new defense, foreign and economic security ministers are not your typical stodgy line-up. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/22/japan/politics/new-foreign-defense-ministers/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #defense #cabinet #toshimitsumotegi #shinjirokoizumi #kimionoda #economicsecurity #foreignministry #defenseministry #sanaetakaichi
Japan’s new ruling coalition policy agreement has quietly tucked in a number of defense initiatives that could further accelerate the country’s push to beef up its security and shed some postwar constraints. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/21/japan/politics/japan-ruling-bloc-defense/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #ldp #nipponishinnokai #sanaetakaichi #donaldtrump #us #usjapanrelations #budgets #defense #defenseministry
U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee to be the Pentagon's top Asia official has urged Japan to ramp up its defense budget, saying Tokyo “has long underemphasized spending for its own defense.” https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/08/japan/japan-us-defense-spending-pentagon/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #usjapanrelations #donaldtrump #defense #budgets #shigeruishiba #defenseministry #indopacific #johnnoh #sanaetakaichi
In many other countries, startups producing defense-related technology would be unremarkable. But Japan has long had few startups and a taboo against the defense industry, including severe restrictions on arms exports. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/07/japan/society/japan-investment-defense-startups/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #society #defense #defenseministry #startups #airkamuy #sdf #sanaetakaichi #constitution
The Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency, marking 10 years since its founding, is playing a larger role as the control tower for the unified management of defense equipment research and development and exports. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/02/japan/defense-equipment-agency-role/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #atla #defense #gennakatani #defenseministry
Japan has completed its first-ever fighter jet deployment to Canada and Europe in a display of support for NATO partner countries as well as a demonstration of the Air Self-Defense Force’s operational capabilities. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/10/01/japan/atlantic-eagles-fighter-jet/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #asdf #defense #defenseministry #atlanticeagles
Japan would be a "capable participant" in the evolving U.S.-U.K.-Australia defense partnership, an unreleased U.S. State Department assessment to Congress has said. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/09/18/japan/japan-role-in-us-uk-australia-defense-pact/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #usjapanrelations #defense #defenseministry #sdf #aukus
China’s Defense Ministry on Tuesday offered the latest hint that its third and largest aircraft carrier could soon enter service, after it undergoes further testing and training in the disputed South China Sea. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/09/16/asia-pacific/china-fujian-aircraft-carrier-south-china-sea/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #china #aircraftcarriers #pla #southchinasea #taiwan #disputedislands #chinajapanrelations #defense #defenseministry
Astroscale Holdings, which had 30% of its record quarterly revenue in the first quarter come from defense contracts, expects satellite orders to rise under new space-defense guidelines from the U.K. and Japan. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2025/09/16/companies/astroscale-satellite-orders/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #companies #astroscale #satellites #uk #space #defense #defenseministry
Japan has successfully test-fired a railgun against a target vessel at sea, taking it a step closer to becoming the first nation to deploy the cutting-edge weapon system. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/09/11/japan/railgun-test-firing/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #defenseministry #defense #guns #msdf
The U.S. military is for the first time bringing some of its most advanced missile systems for keeping Chinese forces at bay to joint training with Japan, part of a gradual policy shift by Tokyo. What does this all mean? https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/09/10/japan/us-deploying-missiles-system-in-okinawa/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #usjapanrelations #us #missiles #defense #usmilitary #china #pla #sdf #defenseministry
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back have agreed to make mutual visits a regular practice and stake out areas of high-tech defense cooperation. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/09/08/japan/politics/japan-south-korea-defense-ministers/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #politics #southkorea #southkoreajapanrelations #gennakatani #ahngyuback #defenseministry #defense #northkorea #shigeruishiba#leejaemyung