Japanese Media: Japan's Defense Budget Proposal Emphasizes "New Types of Warfare"

According to a report by Reference News Network on August 27, the Japanese Asahi Shimbun reported on August 25 that the Japanese Ministry of Defense plans to make the response to "new forms of warfare" such as drones and artificial intelligence, as well as enhancing "sustained response capability," the core pillars of its initial budget request for fiscal year 2027. Due to strong opposition from influential Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lawmakers regarding defense and security policies, the term "new defense methods," which Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi had previously insisted on using, has been set aside. On the other hand, the government's aim to ensure "sustained operational capability" has also been expressed as "sustained response capability" to facilitate better public understanding.

The Ministry of Defense's budget request will focus on three main pillars: first, how to respond to "new forms of warfare" such as artificial intelligence and unmanned equipment; second, to enhance the Self-Defense Forces' "sustained response capability" in light of the long-term nature of situations; and third, to strengthen the "foundations of defense capability" such as domestic production and technological base. It is expected that these directions will be incorporated into the "Three Security Documents" scheduled for revision at the end of this year.

Regarding the response to "new forms of warfare," Kishi has been using the term "new defense methods" since May of this year. He explained, "We are not directly copying the 'new forms of warfare' from around the world, but rather formulating a strategy that is most suitable for Japan. This expression is used to convey this concept to the public in an easily understandable way."

Against the backdrop of Japan's adherence to the principle of "defensive defense," this move was originally intended to downplay the heavy military connotation in order to gain public understanding.

However, influential LDP lawmakers in the field of security policy have raised objections, such as "If it is a defensive method, then there are some things that cannot be done" and "This is just fooling people." It is reported that Kishi explained, "This is just a statement aimed at the domestic public."

Additionally, the Ministry of Defense has decided to avoid using the term "sustained operational capability" in its budget request, instead clearly stating the goal of enhancing "sustained response capability." The Ministry's objective is to ensure sustained response capability by strengthening the stable production system for ammunition and other supplies. Some LDP lawmakers have expressed that "sustained operational capability" could easily be misunderstood as a call to continuously launch attacks. (Translated by Ma Xiaoyun)