Defence Japan to build missile training site on Minamitori Island

[thomas]

According to a Defence Ministry official, Japan plans to establish a training site for surface-to-ship missile launches on Minamitori Island, a remote Pacific island. This initiative aims to bolster Japan's long-range strike capabilities in response to China's military activities. Local officials have been informed about the plan, which targets operational readiness by fiscal 2026. Minamitori Island, Japan's easternmost island, is about 1,900 kilometres southeast of Tokyo. If implemented, this would be Japan's first training site for missiles with a range exceeding 100 km. The site may also host exercises for the upgraded Type-12 land-to-ship guided missile, which has an extended range of approximately 1,000 km and is expected to be deployed in fiscal 2025.

​

The plan emerged as Tokyo aims to acquire "counterstrike capabilities" of attacking targets in enemy territory directly in an emergency, with Beijing's military buildup and provocative activities in waters near Japan, especially the East China Sea, in mind. The capabilities aim to deter attacks from outside forces by developing and procuring missiles capable of being launched from beyond the range of enemy fire. [...] The GSDF has deployed surface-to-ship missile units in Miyako and Ishigaki islands in the southern prefecture of Okinawa, Uruma on Okinawa's main island, and Amami-Oshima Island in the southwestern prefecture of Kagoshima. Minamitori Island has no civilian population; only Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force members and Meteorological Agency personnel are stationed there.

Japan planning to build missile training site on Pacific island

Japan plans to build a training site for surface-to-ship missile launches on a remote Pacific island, a Defense Ministry official said Thursday, in its latest effort to strengthen the nation's long-range strike capabilities amid China's military assertiveness.

english.kyodonews.net

 

[johnnyG]

Practice run for doing the same on the senkakus?