Japan has completed its first missile test on its own soil, a key step in the country’s continuous military buildup aimed at discouraging China’s growing aggressiveness in the region. The test was conducted on Tuesday at the Shizunai Anti-Air Firing Range in Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost main island.
This exercise included the test-firing of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ Type 88 surface-to-ship, short-range missile, which is mounted on trucks and has a range of around 100 kilometers.
The drill, which targeted an unmanned boat about 40 kilometers off Hokkaido’s southern shore, drew some 300 soldiers from the Ground Self-Defence Force’s 1st Artillery Brigade. The missile fired in the test was a training round, and officials are currently reviewing the findings of the exercise.
Japan has traditionally conducted missile testing abroad, notably in the United States and Australia, because to domestic space constraints and safety concerns. The choice to perform this test domestically demonstrates Japan’s shift toward a more self-sufficient defense posture and the pursuit of strike-back capabilities, particularly in light of China’s increased naval activity and joint Chinese-Russian military maneuvers near Japanese waters.
This test comes as Japan accelerates its military modernization under a five-year security policy approved in 2022 that recognizes China as the country’s most serious strategic challenge and asks for a stronger relationship with the United States.
Japan is also planning to deploy long-range cruise missiles, including US-made Tomahawks, later this year. Japan is also developing the Type 12 surface-to-ship missile, an improved successor to the Type 88, with a planned range of around 1,000 kilometers—ten times that of the Type 88—to improve its deterrence capabilities.
Japan is also preparing to build a missile-firing range on Minamitorishima, an uninhabited island in the western Pacific, following recent sightings of Chinese aircraft carriers in the area. These improvements reflect Japan’s broader attempts to enhance its defense infrastructure in the face of persistent territorial conflicts with Russia and increased regional security concerns.
Japan’s first domestic missile test is a watershed moment in the country’s growing defense strategy, indicating a clear desire to increase self-sufficiency and deterrence in the face of mounting regional threats, primarily from China and, to a lesser extent, Russia.
