2026-02-28 18:00
publication
2026-02-28 18:00
The Japan Self-Defense Force plans to deploy surface-to-air missile systems on Yonaguni Island, located about 110 km from Taiwan, Nikkei Asia reported. The installation of the system, scheduled for fiscal year 2030, is intended to strengthen the defense of the archipelago.
These plans were announced on Tuesday by Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi. Missiles intended to intercept enemy planes and missiles are to be installed on the island. In connection with the information meeting for residents planned for March 2, the minister assured that the authorities would explain “everything as thoroughly as possible.”
Yonaguni is the westernmost point of Japan. The current garrison is mainly engaged in intelligence and surveillance, which makes it defenseless against direct air attack. An electronic warfare unit is to be established there as early as 2026, whose task will be to disrupt the radars and communication systems of a possible enemy.
The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force has been expanding bases in the southwest of the country since 2016. These actions result from security concerns in the event of an armed conflict in the Taiwan Strait. In 2022, during Chinese maneuvers, one of the missiles launched fell into the sea only 80 km from the coast of the island.
Nikkei Asia reminds that Beijing criticized Tokyo's previous announcements about strengthening the defense of the archipelago. After Koizumi's visit to Yonaguni in November 2025, China accused Japan of deliberately stoking tensions in the region.
Since Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in November that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would pose an “existential threat” to Japan, justifying a response from its Self-Defense Forces, relations between Beijing and Tokyo have been at their worst in years. China accuses the Japanese authorities of striving for “remilitarization” and abandoning the pacifist constitution.
Krzysztof Pawliszak (PAP)
krp/ap/
