The Japanese government intends to purchase up to 400 Tomahawk cruise missiles from the United States, since the national industry does not have time to develop and produce the corresponding domestic weapons. According to TASS with reference to the Yomiuri newspaper, this was stated by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in the budget commission of the lower house of parliament.
“We made a decision to purchase missiles from the United States, taking into account the real situation with the schedule for the production of domestic weapons of this type and our production capabilities,” he said. The head of the cabinet made it clear that Tokyo intends to accelerate the implementation of the program to create its own modernized missiles that can become part of the potential of the so-called retaliatory strike on the territory of a potential enemy.
It is reported that the Japanese government intends to conclude a contract for a one-time purchase of up to 400 Tomahawk missiles from the United States in fiscal year 2023. Tokyo had previously asked Washington for approval for 500 missiles, but that number had to be reduced to accommodate American manufacturing capabilities.
At the same time, Tokyo is now modernizing its own Type-12 missiles, their range should exceed 1,000 km. These weapons are being created for mobile ground installations, as well as for ships and aircraft. However, there may be delays in their upgrade schedule.
Source: Rosbalt
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