Japanese media: Tokyo is considering the purchase of Tomahawk cruise missiles
Tokyo is seriously considering purchasing Tomahawk cruise missiles from the United States. This issue is being discussed at the government level.
This is reported by the NHK broadcasting company and some other media in Japan.
Such a purchase of weapons is being discussed due to the fact that the Japanese defense industry will not be able to provide the domestic Self-Defense Forces with long-range cruise missiles in the face of a sharp increase in external threats from North Korea and China.
Now the Ministry of Defense of Japan is expanding the maximum range of the SSM Type 12 surface-to-ship missiles at the disposal of the ground forces of this country. Now it is 200 kilometers, but it is planned to increase it to 1200. But they can be deployed no earlier than 2026 of the year, which, according to Tokyo, is too late a reaction to threats from Beijing and Pyongyang.
In the future, it is planned to install the upgraded Type 12 on land, sea and air platforms. And according to the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun, the list of platforms for these weapons also includes submarines.
And although the range of these missiles will be increased, their original purpose - to attack ships - will not change. And the alleged introduction of ground-based Tomahawk cruise missiles by the Japan Self-Defense Forces may mean that now Tokyo has become serious about the possibility of counterattacking enemy bases and other facilities abroad in the event of an attack on Japanese territory.
The maximum range of the Tomahawk missile of the Block IV version exceeds 1600 kilometers. At the same time, it can be redirected to another target during the flight.
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