Katsumata: U.S. and Japan Need Plan to Defend Against North Korea
August 18, 2006 :: UPI :: News
The U.S. and Japan have surprisingly little coordination in their current ballistic missile defense deployments, reports the UPI. The article quotes Hidemichi Katsumata, who discussed this lack of coordination in the Tokyo newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun on July 14, 10 days after North Korea test launched a salvo of long- and short-range ballistic missiles. “It may come as a surprise to many, but the [Japanese] government does not have plans in place to enable U.S. armed forces and the SDF [Japanese Self Defense Forces] to work jointly to protect the country from a ballistic missile attack,” Katsumata wrote. He recommended that “the [Japanese] government should therefore map out as soon as possible a joint Japan-U.S. strategy to prepare for a possible missile attack. Determining what roles U.S. forces and SDF troops can play, and what they are allowed to do, the government could help to deter North Korea.” (Article, Link)
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Japan Scheduled to Deploy Six Aegis Ships by 2008
July 23, 2006 :: Kyodo :: News
Japan plans to deploy a total of six Aegis-quipped warships by the spring of 2008, reports Kyodo. Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force has already deployed four Aegis destroyers, the Kongou and Choukai, both based in Sasebo, the Myoukou in Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, and the Kirishima in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture. A fifth warship, the Atago, is to be commissioned next spring and deployed at Maizuru. A sixth Aegis destroyer is under construction in Nagasaki, and will be deployed at Sasebo after its completion in the spring of 2008. Five of the six Aegis warships will be deployed along the Sea of Japan to provide a defensive shield against the threat of ballistic missile attack from North Korea. All of Japan’s Aegis warships are currently equipped with SM-2 interceptors, although the MSDF is planning to upgrade them to SM-3 interceptors, capable of hitting ballistic missiles at a far higher altitude. (Article, Link)
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U.S. to Deploy PAC-3 in Okinawa, Beginning in August
July 20, 2006 :: Washington Post :: News
The U.S. will deploy Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) surface-to-air missiles in Okinawa next month, U.S. and Japanese officials announced yesterday. The Pentagon will relocate PAC-3 interceptors along with 600 troops from the Air Defense Artillery Battalion at Fort Bliss, Texas, to the U.S. Kadena Air Base and the nearby Munitions Storage Area on Okinawa. Japanese officials said the system is scheduled to be at least partially operational by year’s end. In addition, Japan’s Self Defense Force will begin deploying PAC-3 systems on military bases by next March. The rollout will begin at Iruma Base just west of Tokyo, spreading to three other bases by the end of 2007. Japan intends to keep deploying the system throughout the country through 2010. (Article, Link)
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» Missile system details for: Japanese Ballistic Missile Defense, Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3)
Japan Considers Preemptive Strike Against North Korea
July 10, 2006 :: AP :: News
Japan is considering whether a preemptive strike on North Korea’s missile bases would violate its constitution, reports the AP. Japan’s constitution currently prohibits the use of military force in settling international disputes, and forbids Japan from sustaining a military for use in warfare. Tokyo, however, has interpreted this to mean that it can protect itself with armed troops, allowing for the existence of the Self-Defense Forces including missile defense assets. Government officials are now discussing a possible legal framework that would allow Tokyo to launch a preemptive strike against North Korea’s ballistic missile arsenal. “If we accept that there is no other option to prevent an attack … there is the view that attacking the launch base of the guided missiles is within the constitutional right of self-defense. We need to deepen discussion,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said.
The debate, like similar calls in the United States to preemptively destroy North Korean missiles, illustrates how vulnerability to ballistic missiles can constrain and narrow a nation’s freedom of action in responding to threats. (Article, Link)
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Japan to Deploy PAC-3 Ahead of Schedule
July 9, 2006 :: Xinhua :: News
The Japanese Defense Agency has decided to deploy Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) air/missile defense interceptors now rather than next year, reports Toyko News. The original plan had been for Japan to begin its ground-based interceptor build-up in March 2007, concluding deployment of the entire missile shield in 2011. According to the report, Japan will instead start deploying PAC-3 units immediately. The decision follows North Korea’s test launch of the long-range Taep’o-dong 2 and other ballistic missiles last week, most of which are capable of striking Japan. (Article, Link)
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Japan Wants Joint Missile Defense System “As Soon as Possible”
July 6, 2006 :: AFP :: News
Japan wants to deploy a joint missile defense with the U.S. as quickly as possible, said Japan’s Defense Minister Fukushiro Nukaga today. “Along with the establishment of a surveillance radar network, we want to work with the United States to build an interception mechanism as soon as possible,” Nukaga said, speaking before the Japanese parliament. Japan began its missile defense cooperation with the U.S. after North Korea’s 1998 test launch of a Taep’o-dong 1 ballistic missile, which flew over Japan. In June 2006, Japan and the U.S. signed an agreement to expand missile defense cooperation, committing to the joint production of interceptor missiles, and allowing the transfer of missile defense technology from Japan to the U.S. (Article, Link)
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North Korea Test Launches Seventh Missile; Possibly Twelve Total
July 5, 2006 :: AP :: News
North Korea test-launched a seventh ballistic missile today, provoking international condemnation and possible sanctions. An official at the South Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed that the seventh missile was either short- or medium-range. Japan’s Kyodo News Agency reported that the missile landed six minutes after launch, but did not give a location. North Korea’s actions provoked immediate international condemnation, including the convening of an emergency session of the U.N. Security Council and calls in Japan for economic sanctions against the communist regime.
The Chosun Ilbo reports that, overall, there were two salvos of missiles, and as many as twelve total, with the second salvo perhaps also including a number of surface-to-ship missiles. (Article, Link)
» Chosun Ilbo: North Korea fires as many as 12 missiles
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Japan to Allow U.S. Deployment of Patriots
June 24, 2006 :: AP :: News
Japan and the U.S. have agreed to deploy Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) surface-to-air interceptors at U.S. bases in Japan, reports the AP. The agreement was made earlier this month amid concerns that North Korea would test-launch a Taep’o-dong 2 ballistic missile. According to Japanese officials, the sites and timing for the deployment have not yet been decided. The Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun reported today, however, that the U.S. will deploy three or four PAC-3 batteries as well as 500-600 troops on the southern island of Okinawa by the end of the year. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: Tien Ma 1
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Japan and U.S. Expand Missile Defense Pact
June 23, 2006 :: Washington Post :: News
The U.S. and Japan have signed an agreement to expand cooperation on a joint ballistic missile defense system. The additional pact comes amid concerns that North Korea might test-launch a Taep’o-dong 2 long-range missile. Signed by U.S. Ambassador Thomas Schieffer and Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso, the agreement commits the two countries to the joint production of interceptor missiles, and allows for the transfer of ballistic missile defense technology from Japan to the U.S.. The technology transfer issue is a sensitive one in Japan, which has long adhered to a self-imposed ban on arms exports.
The agreement is said to have actually been reached by both countries last year, and today’s signing is seen by many as a warning to North Korea, whose 1998 test-launch of a Taep’o-dong 1 medium-range missile over northern Japan served as Tokyo’s primary impetus for pursuing missile defense in the first place. Political and military analysts also say that in the long term, the primary U.S. and Japanese motivation for the expansion of a joint ballistic missile defense shield is fear over the potential threat posed by China. (Article, Link)
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» Missile details: Tien Chi, Tien Ma 1
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Aegis SM-3 Interceptor Destroys Separating Target, Japanese Destroyer Performs Surveillance
June 22, 2006 :: The Missile Defense Agency :: News
MDA today conducted a successful test of the Aegis ballistic missile defense system, destroying a separating target with a Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) interceptor. The warhead was launched atop a three-stage medium-range ballistic missile, which was detected, tracked, and targeted by Aegis AN/SPY-1 phased-array radars. A SM-3 interceptor was launched from the Aegis cruiser U.S.S. Shiloh off the coast of Hawaii, and scored a direct hit more than 160 km above the Pacific Ocean. The test marked the seventh time (out of eight attempts) that MDA has successfully shot down a target missile with a ship-launched interceptor, and the second time that Aegis has successfully intercepted a separating warhead. Also noteworthy is the fact that the Japanese destroyer Kirishima performed surveillance and tracking roles, marking the first time any U.S. ally has taken part in a U.S. missile defense intercept test. (Article, Link)
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» Missile system details for: Aegis Ship-Based BMD, Japanese Ballistic Missile Defense
