Japan plans to deploy surface-to-air missiles on Yonaguni Island, its westernmost territory nearly 110 km from Taiwan, by March 2031, Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said on Tuesday.
The deployment would mark the first time Tokyo has provided a clear timeline for stationing such missiles near Taiwan, a move likely to infuriate China further.
Koizumi revealed the plan during a regular press conference in Tokyo, noting that the timeline depends on progress in facility preparations.
“We are planning fiscal 2030,” he said, adding that the ministry is conducting basic studies on developing facilities on the eastern side of Camp Yonaguni, the existing Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) base there.
The statement came during months of confrontation between Japan and China, with Beijing announcing that it was imposing export restrictions on dozens of Japanese companies that it said were involved in building up the country’s military.
The actions cover exports of “dual-use” items — which can have civilian and military uses — to 20 Japanese entities, including subsidiaries of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Japan’s space agency.
“The above measures are aimed at curbing Japan’s ‘remilitarisation’ and nuclear ambitions and are completely legitimate, reasonable and lawful,” a commerce ministry statement said. “Honest and law-abiding Japanese entities have nothing to worry about,” it added.
Tokyo strongly opposed the actions and urged they be overturned, according to deputy chief cabinet secretary Kei Sato, who called Beijing’s move “absolutely intolerable and extremely regrettable.”
Japan has been shedding its strict pacifist stance, moving to obtain “counterstrike” capabilities and to ease rules on the export of lethal defence equipment. Tokyo, in December 2025, approved a record defence budget worth nine trillion yen ($58 billion) for the coming fiscal year to augment its military capabilities.
Beijing’s top diplomat Wang Yi said at the Munich Security Conference this month that forces in Japan were seeking to “revive militarism”.
Japanese PM Takaichi told parliament that China was boosting efforts to change the status quo “by force or coercion” in the East and South China Seas.
“Strengthening our defence capabilities is essential to protect the lives and peaceful livelihoods of our citizens as we face the most severe and complex security environment since the end of World War II,” Takaichi said Monday.
Now, Tokyo is expected to deploy Type-03 medium-range surface-to-air guided missiles (also known as Chu-SAM), capable of intercepting aircraft and ballistic missiles.
Koizumi, who visited the island in November, said the ministry would brief residents next week on the plans. The deployment forms part of Japan’s broader efforts to strengthen defences in its southwestern islands amid growing regional security concerns, including China’s military activities and maritime assertiveness near Taiwan and the Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu in China).
Japan has previously stationed similar Type-03 systems and Type-12 surface-to-ship missiles on nearby Ishigaki Island. The announcement comes amid heightened tensions in the region, though Koizumi described the step as defensive.
Japan’s conservative Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested in November that Tokyo could intervene militarily in any attack on self-ruled Taiwan. Since Takaichi remarked, Beijing has discouraged Chinese nationals from visiting Japan, which hit tourism, one of the pillars of the Japanese economy.
Type-03 Missile
Japan’s Type 03 surface-to-air missile system forms a key component of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force’s (JGSDF) air defence capabilities.
The system, developed by Mitsubishi Electric and manufactured by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, features missiles with an operational range of 50 km or more, a maximum speed of Mach 2.5, and a single-stage solid-propellant rocket motor.
It employs an advanced AESA radar, enabling the system to track up to 100 targets simultaneously and engage up to 12 at once. The missiles use active radar homing in the terminal phase, supported by inertial guidance and mid-flight command links.
Japan frequently deploys Type-03 to deter the Chinese military in the region. In November 2021, an Okinawa Prefecture-based Okinawa Times reported that the Japan Self-Defense Force garrison at Miyakojima (Miyako Island) installed a Type 03 air defense missile system.
The Miyako Strait, which separates the Japanese islands of Miyako and Okinawa, provides a narrow air and maritime route across Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
Chinese military planners consider the Miyako Strait and the Bashi Channel two crucial chokepoints in the first island chain. Such passages worsen bilateral relations by putting Japan on high alert over the possibility of its territory being cut off.
While the system enhances defences against conventional aerial and cruise missile threats, its effectiveness against hypersonic weapons will depend on ongoing upgrades and testing.
By ET Desk with AFP Inputs
