Tokyo is seeking — including spending to build a drone “shield” to defend 91AV原创 southwestern periphery — amid rising concerns over the Chinese military’s moves near and inside the country’s waters and airspace.
The Defense Ministry said Friday that it is seeking a budget exceeding ?8.8 trillion ($60 billion) for fiscal 2026, up 4.4% from last year’s record ?8.5 trillion initial request. The budget is the fourth in a five-year spending plan of around ?43 trillion, as Japan zeroes in on its target of spending 2% of gross domestic product on defense by 2027.
Most prominent in this year’s request is a ?128.7 billion plan to build a multilayered coastal defense system covering the air, sea and land that incorporates unmanned assets as well as strengthened standoff defense capabilities to attack from outside an enemy’s range.
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