Japan’s Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters on Nov. 23 that Japan is planning to station medium-range surface-to-air missiles on Yonaguni Island. Koizumi made the comments during a visit he to the island, reported Bloomberg. Yonaguni Island is the farthest of the Ryukyu Islands chain that stretches several hundred miles from Mainland Japan, and is the closest of all to Taiwan at only about 110 kilometers (68 miles).
“The deployment can help lower the chance of an armed attack on our country,” Koizumi said. “The view that it will heighten regional tensions is not accurate.” In a separate meeting with the mayor of Yonaguni, Koizumi said: “Today, Japan faces the most severe and complex security environment since the end of World War II. To protect the peaceful livelihoods of the Japanese people—including everyone here on Yonaguni—we must strengthen the Self-Defense Forces’ capabilities.”
This announcement will certainly be seen with alarm by China. It takes place just weeks after new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made aggressive comments about getting involved militarily in a China-Taiwan conflict, and has emphasized the need for Japan to expand its military posture in the region.
