TOKYO, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- Japan's Defense Ministry plans to request a record-high budget of about 8.9 trillion yen (around 56 billion U.S. dollars) for fiscal 2027, Japanese media reported recently, while the actual defense budget could rise even further when finalized.
More worrying than the repeated breaking of defense spending records is where the money is going. A large portion of the proposed funds is expected to be used to acquire offensive weapons and develop "new forms of warfare," highlighting the country's accelerating trajectory toward remilitarization.
The continued military buildup, coupled with growing fiscal pressures, has raised concerns in Japan.
DEFENSE BUDGET KEEPS CLIMBING
Kyodo News recently quoted several sources as saying that Japan's Defense Ministry plans to seek about 8.9 trillion yen from the Finance Ministry for the year starting next April, the largest defense budget request on record. Since the request includes numerous items without specified amounts that will be finalized during year-end budget negotiations, the actual budget is expected to increase further, with a senior government official saying that defense spending could ultimately reach around 10 trillion yen.
Japan's current three security documents, formulated at the end of 2022, call for increasing the country's total defense spending over the five years from fiscal 2023 through fiscal 2027 to about 43 trillion yen. Since fiscal year 2023, the country's defense budget has successively exceeded 6 trillion yen, 7 trillion yen, 8 trillion yen, and 9 trillion yen, showing a clear upward trend. If the fiscal 2027 budget eventually reaches 10 trillion yen, the rapid expansion of defense spending will continue unabated.
The three security documents also had set a goal of raising defense-related spending to 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by fiscal 2027. After Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office last October, her government accelerated its military buildup and brought forward the 2-percent target to fiscal 2025.
Even before the end of the current planning period under the three security documents, calls have emerged in Japan to further raise the defense spending-to-GDP ratio.
In June, Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) submitted proposals to Takaichi ahead of the planned year-end revision of the three security documents. Citing practices in several countries where defense spending exceeds 3 percent of GDP, the proposal called for securing the necessary funding to "transform defense capabilities within five years," triggering concerns in Japanese public opinion.
Analysts say the continued expansion of Japan's defense spending sends a dangerous signal that the Takaichi government is seeking to accelerate military expansion and pursue a major enhancement of its military capabilities.
A SHIFT TOWARD OFFENSIVE MILITARY CAPABILITIES
The allocation of the proposed funds shows that Japan's so-called "defense capabilities" are increasingly focused on offensive weapons and "new forms of warfare," indicating a clear intention to push beyond the country's long-standing "exclusively defense-oriented policy."
According to Kyodo News, Japan's Defense Ministry plans to apply artificial intelligence to command-and-control systems to assist with data analysis and the identification of targets, with the aim of improving the speed and efficiency of decision-making.
The ministry also plans to procure large numbers of interceptor drones and combine them with technologies including high-power lasers, which are still under development, to build an integrated air-defense network.
Long-range missiles "capable of conducting counterstrike operations against enemy bases" are another major focus of the proposed spending. Japan deployed the Type-25 Surface-to-Ship Guided Missile this year and plans to develop and deploy air-launched and ship-launched variants to establish a comprehensive long-range stand-off strike network.
"Defense of Japan 2026," released on Aug. 4, further confirms the offensive and combat-oriented direction of its so-called "defense capabilities." The defense white paper advocates strengthening long-range strike capabilities, advancing research on hypersonic missiles, and introducing foreign-made stand-off missiles.
The annual report also gives prominent attention to "new forms of warfare" and portrays the expansion of the military-industrial sector as a potential driver of economic growth, prompting concerns in Japan.
An editorial in the Japanese newspaper Ryukyu Shimpo warned that the white paper devotes substantially more space to "new forms of warfare," raising serious concerns that Japan's "exclusively defense-oriented policy" could be undermined.
An editorial in The Asahi Shimbun said the white paper's claim that strengthening defense capabilities could contribute to economic development was one-sided, stressing that greater spending in the defense sector would not necessarily improve people's living standards.
MILITARY BUILDUP ADDS TO FISCAL STRAIN
With defense budgets repeatedly hitting new highs, all sectors in Japan are growing concerned about the sustainability of the nation's public finances.
The Japanese newspaper Nihonkai Shimbun reported that the target of defense spending equivalent to 2 percent of GDP was originally calculated on the basis of GDP in fiscal 2022. If the three security documents are revised this year and fiscal 2026 GDP becomes the new benchmark, defense spending could reach 14 trillion yen if nominal GDP is estimated at 700 trillion yen.
With inflationary pressures still weighing on Japan's economy, finding the funds for massive defense spending has become a pressing challenge for the Finance Ministry.
The newspaper noted that proposed consumption tax cuts could reduce annual tax revenue by about 5 trillion yen. Against this backdrop, a sharp increase in defense spending could further heighten concerns in financial markets over Japan's fiscal health. A Finance Ministry official was quoted as saying, "Honestly, this is difficult."
A former senior Japanese government official was also quoted as saying that fiscal spending reforms had already approached their limits and that if defense spending were to rise substantially, the government might have little choice but to issue deficit-covering government bonds or introduce additional defense-related taxes.
A key LDP figure involved in defense policy acknowledged that the economy is the foundation of national security, warning that if Japan adopts an imbalanced fiscal policy to finance a sharp increase in defense spending, it could ultimately undermine the country's own security.
The repeated expansion of Japan's defense budget thus reveals a dual risk: a continued shift toward offensive military capabilities and mounting pressure on the country's already strained public finances. Behind the record-breaking figures lies a broader question: whether Japan is gradually moving away from its postwar defense-oriented framework while asking its economy and people to bear the growing cost of that shift. ■