Tokyo, Aug. 29 (UNI) Japan’s defense ministry on Friday submitted a record defense budget request of 8.8 trillion yen for the fiscal year 2026, with a focus on deploying various missiles and drones.
The budget request, up from last year’s record 8.5 trillion yen initial request, is the fourth in a five-year defense buildup plan of around 43 trillion yen, as Japan zeroes in on its target of spending 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense by 2027.
According to the defense ministry document, about 1 trillion yen will be used to obtain “standoff” missiles targeting adversaries from outside their strike range.
Under the proposal, some 312.8 billion yen will be allocated to purchase aerial drones.
The Japanese government set a goal in 2022 of gradually hiking defense-related spending to 2 percent of GDP by fiscal 2027, which has raised concerns domestically and internationally.
