As Pyongyang, which is home to a nuclear arsenal, alarmed its neighbors with a series of missile launches and hostile rhetoric on Friday, Japan declared that North Korea constituted a greater threat to its national security than ever before.
As the globe enters a new era of crises, Japan’s defense ministry argues for a major increase in domestic defense spending in its annual white paper, which provides a summary of the most urgent military threats and strategies to ensure stability.
North Korea’s Military Activities Raise Concerns
The white paper placed North Korea alongside China’s expanding military might and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as two of its top concerns.
The military activities of North Korea now more than ever represent a serious and immediate threat to Japan’s security.
The white paper, which Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s cabinet endorsed on Friday morning, was released as North Korea increases the frequency of its missile testing.
On Thursday, images showed Kim Jong Un showing Russia’s defense minister a tour of the nation’s most cutting-edge arsenal, including intercontinental ballistic missiles and never-before-seen military drones, were posted by North Korean state media.
Kim Jong Un has consistently backed Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, including, according to Washington, by providing rockets and missiles, which Pyongyang has denied.
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Implications for Regional Security
The most recent of Pyongyang’s recent weapons tests took place on Monday, and they coincide with an expansion of military cooperation between Tokyo, Seoul, and Washington to fight the North’s increasing nuclear threats and China’s regional sway.
The white paper reiterated that joint military maneuvers with Russia were also of concern and that China’s military activities presented an unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge to Japan.
China routinely sends governmental vessels to islands that Tokyo claims as its own while also conducting navy exercises in international waters, including the Pacific, alarming Japan and other neighbors.
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