Japan’s Defense Ministry is considering the deployment of hypersonic missiles by 2030, seeking to bolster counterstrike capabilities to deter regional threats.

Ukrinform reported about this with reference to Nikkei.

Such a decision was dictated by Russia’s war against Ukraine, transforming the global security landscape.

“Given North Korean and Chinese advancements in missile capabilities, Japan believes it needs to be able to not only intercept incoming projectiles, but to strike back if necessary,” the publication said.

Tokyo will revise its national security strategy and other key defense documents at the end of 2022, when its position regarding counterstrike capabilities will be outlined, which is expected to include hypersonic missiles as well.

One such proposal is that Japan could purchase and deploy US-made Tomahawk missiles.

This regards the update of anti-ship missiles of their own production, supposedly Type 12 missiles. Their range is planned to extend to more than 1,000 km.

In August of this year, Japan began the process of deploying the upgraded Type 12 missile.

Initially, the Type 12 surface-to-ship missile had a flight range of about 200 kilometers.

The new upgraded version aims to extend the flight range to at least 900 km, and eventually to 1,200 km. The shape of the missile has also been changed to make it stealthy.

Also in September, Japanese and US defense ministers Yasukazu Hamada and Lloyd Austin agreed on cooperation in the field of defense technology. The countries are planning joint research to create systems against hypersonic weapons.

As previously reported, in 2020, the official of the Ministry of Defense of Japan Tomohiro Yamamoto (山本ととひろ) released photos featuring the Research Center for Aviation and Missile Technologies of the Self-Defense Forces in Tokyo, where work was carried out on the development of the concept of a hypersonic missile.

The work was carried out under the control of the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency of the Ministry of Defense of Japan.

The first stage will accelerate the rocket to a speed of Mach 3. Then the direct current engine must be turned on in supersonic mode. It will accelerate the ammunition to Mach 5 and enter hypersonic mode, in which it will increase the speed of the missile.

It was assumed that a hypersonic missile would be able to fly at high altitudes at hypersonic speeds and maneuver at the same time, making its interception significantly more difficult.