Japan Will Begin Deploying Homegrown Longer-Range Missiles as Counterstrike Strategy Takes Shape |
Asia Defense | Security | East Asia
Japan Will Begin Deploying Homegrown Longer-Range Missiles as Counterstrike Strategy Takes Shape
March 31 will mark the first deployment of two new Japanese systems: the Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile (HVGP) for island defense and the upgraded Type 12 surface-to-ship missile.
The Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile (HVGP) for island defense.
Japan will begin deploying new homegrown longer-range missiles later this month, marking a major step in the country’s effort to operationalize its newly adopted “counterstrike capabilities.” The move represents one of the most concrete manifestations yet of Tokyo’s evolving defense strategy amid growing regional security tensions.
On March 10, Japan’s Ministry of Defense announced that a ground-launched hypersonic glide weapon known as the Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile (HVGP) for island defense will be deployed to the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) Camp Fuji in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, on March 31.
The same day will also see the first operational deployment of an upgraded Type 12 surface-to-ship missile at JGSDF Camp Kengun in Kumamoto Prefecture. Located in central Kyushu, the base places parts of China and the Korean Peninsula within the missile’s estimated range.
The twin deployments signal the start of Japan’s effort to field domestically developed longer-range strike capabilities. Together with planned acquisitions of other standoff weapons, they form a central pillar of Tokyo’s strategy to deter adversaries by holding key military targets at risk from greater distances.
For decades since World War II, Japan has maintained an exclusively defense-oriented security posture, limiting the role of its Self-Defense Forces largely to repelling attacks on Japanese territory.
However, the regional security environment has changed dramatically in recent years. North Korea has continued to advance its nuclear weapons program and develop increasingly sophisticated ballistic missiles, while China has rapidly expanded its military capabilities and intensified activities around the East China Sea, Taiwan, and the western Pacific.
In response, Japan revised its three key security documents in December 2022, including the National Security Strategy and the National Defense Strategy. The updated policies formally introduced the concept of “counterstrike capabilities” – the ability to strike enemy missile launch sites or other military targets if Japan comes under attack.
Japanese officials stress that such capabilities remain defensive in nature and would only be used in response to an armed attack. Even so, the shift represents one of the most significant changes in Japan’s defense policy in decades.
The deployments scheduled for March offer the first concrete indication of how that concept will be implemented.
The HVGP being deployed to Camp Fuji is designed primarily for the defense of Japan’s remote islands, an increasingly important mission as tensions rise in the East China Sea. In particular, China has intensified its activities around the Senkaku Islands – known in China as the Diaoyu Islands – whose sovereignty is disputed between Tokyo and Beijing.
Unlike conventional ballistic missiles, hypersonic glide vehicles separate from their boosters and travel along unpredictable trajectories at very high speeds, making them more difficult for missile defense systems to intercept.
The version being introduced at Camp Fuji is an early operational model with a range of several hundred kilometers. The system will be assigned to a JGSDF artillery training unit, which will use it to develop operational tactics and training methods.
Because the HVGP represents an entirely new category of weapon for the JGSDF, the initial deployment is intended mainly for experimentation and doctrine development.
The Ministry of Defense plans to expand deployment in fiscal year 2026 to Camp Kamifurano in Hokkaido and Camp Ebino in Miyazaki Prefecture. Meanwhile, a more advanced version with a range of up to roughly 2,000 kilometers is under development.
An upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missile. Photo via Japan’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency.
At the same time, Japan will deploy the first upgraded Type 12 surface-to-ship missile, a significantly extended-range version of an existing coastal defense system.
The upgraded missile has a range of about 1,000 kilometers, compared to roughly 200 kilometers for the original model. While initially designed to target hostile ships approaching Japan’s coastline, the improved version is expected to have the capability to strike land-based targets such as missile launch facilities.
From Camp Kengun in Kumamoto, the missile’s range would extend across much of East Asia, potentially reaching large portions of North Korea and parts of China’s eastern coastline.
The missile is expected to become a core component of Japan’s emerging counterstrike capability, enabling ground forces to attack adversary launch sites or other military infrastructure from beyond the reach of many enemy weapons.
The Ministry of Defense accelerated the deployment schedule by roughly one year, citing the need to strengthen deterrence amid growing regional security challenges.
Despite the strategic rationale behind the deployments, they have sparked controversy at the local level.
Residents and civic groups in Kumamoto staged protests outside Camp Kengun after missile-related equipment was delivered to the base early on March 9. Demonstrators warned that the deployment of longer-range missiles could make the area a target in the event of conflict.
Local officials also expressed frustration over the lack of prior notification. Kumamoto Mayor Onishi Kazufumi said the Defense Ministry’s handling of the process had undermined public trust and heightened anxiety among residents.
The ministry plans to hold a briefing and equipment display for local governments and community representatives on March 17 at Camp Kengun. No similar explanatory meeting is planned for the HVGP deployment at Camp Fuji so far.
The HVGP and upgraded Type 12 missile are only part of a broader effort to build a layered longer-range strike capability.
Japan plans to acquire or develop eight types of longer-range missiles, including domestically produced systems and foreign weapons. Among them are U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missiles, which the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force plans to deploy on modified Aegis destroyers.
Together, these systems will give Japan the ability to strike targets far beyond its immediate territory for the first time in the postwar era.
For Tokyo, the introduction of longer-range missiles reflects a broader strategic shift: from relying primarily on missile defense and homeland protection to building the capability to disrupt enemy attacks at their source.
How Japan balances that evolving military posture with domestic concerns and regional stability will likely shape the next phase of its defense policy.
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Japan will begin deploying new homegrown longer-range missiles later this month, marking a major step in the country’s effort to operationalize its newly adopted “counterstrike capabilities.” The move represents one of the most concrete manifestations yet of Tokyo’s evolving defense strategy amid growing regional security tensions.
On March 10, Japan’s Ministry of Defense announced that a ground-launched hypersonic glide weapon known as the Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile (HVGP) for island defense will be deployed to the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) Camp Fuji in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, on March 31.
The same day will also see the first operational deployment of an upgraded Type 12 surface-to-ship missile at JGSDF Camp Kengun in Kumamoto Prefecture. Located in central Kyushu, the base places parts of China and the Korean Peninsula within the missile’s estimated range.
The twin deployments signal the start of Japan’s effort to field domestically developed longer-range strike capabilities. Together with planned acquisitions of other standoff weapons, they form a central pillar of Tokyo’s strategy to deter adversaries by holding key military targets at risk from greater distances.
For decades since World War II, Japan has maintained an exclusively defense-oriented security posture, limiting the role of its Self-Defense Forces largely to repelling attacks on Japanese territory.
However, the regional security environment has changed dramatically in recent years. North Korea has continued to advance its nuclear weapons program and develop increasingly sophisticated ballistic missiles, while China has rapidly expanded its military capabilities and intensified activities around the East China Sea, Taiwan, and the western Pacific.
In response, Japan revised its three key security documents in December 2022, including the National Security Strategy and the National Defense Strategy. The updated policies formally introduced the concept of “counterstrike capabilities” – the ability to strike enemy missile launch sites or other military targets if Japan comes under attack.
Japanese officials stress that such capabilities remain defensive in nature and would only be used in response to an armed attack. Even so, the shift represents one of the most significant changes in Japan’s defense policy in decades.
The deployments scheduled for March offer the first concrete indication of how that concept will be implemented.
The HVGP being deployed to Camp Fuji is designed primarily for the defense of Japan’s remote islands, an increasingly important mission as tensions rise in the East China Sea. In particular, China has intensified its activities around the Senkaku Islands – known in China as the Diaoyu Islands – whose sovereignty is disputed between Tokyo and Beijing.
Unlike conventional ballistic missiles, hypersonic glide vehicles separate from their boosters and travel along unpredictable trajectories at very high speeds, making them more difficult for missile defense systems to intercept.
The version being introduced at Camp Fuji is an early operational model with a range of several hundred kilometers. The system will be assigned to a JGSDF artillery training unit, which will use it to develop operational tactics and training methods.
Because the HVGP represents an entirely new category of weapon for the JGSDF, the initial deployment is intended mainly for experimentation and doctrine development.
The Ministry of Defense plans to expand deployment in fiscal year 2026 to Camp Kamifurano in Hokkaido and Camp Ebino in Miyazaki Prefecture. Meanwhile, a more advanced version with a range of up to roughly 2,000 kilometers is under development.
An upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missile. Photo via Japan’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency.
At the same time, Japan will deploy the first upgraded Type 12 surface-to-ship missile, a significantly extended-range version of an existing coastal defense system.
The upgraded missile has a range of about 1,000 kilometers, compared to roughly 200 kilometers for the original model. While initially designed to target hostile ships approaching Japan’s coastline, the improved version is expected to have the capability to strike land-based targets such as missile launch facilities.
From Camp Kengun in Kumamoto, the missile’s range would extend across much of East Asia, potentially reaching large portions of North Korea and parts of China’s eastern coastline.
The missile is expected to become a core component of Japan’s emerging counterstrike capability, enabling ground forces to attack adversary launch sites or other military infrastructure from beyond the reach of many enemy weapons.
The Ministry of Defense accelerated the deployment schedule by roughly one year, citing the need to strengthen deterrence amid growing regional security challenges.
Despite the strategic rationale behind the deployments, they have sparked controversy at the local level.
Residents and civic groups in Kumamoto staged protests outside Camp Kengun after missile-related equipment was delivered to the base early on March 9. Demonstrators warned that the deployment of longer-range missiles could make the area a target in the event of conflict.
Local officials also expressed frustration over the lack of prior notification. Kumamoto Mayor Onishi Kazufumi said the Defense Ministry’s handling of the process had undermined public trust and heightened anxiety among residents.
The ministry plans to hold a briefing and equipment display for local governments and community representatives on March 17 at Camp Kengun. No similar explanatory meeting is planned for the HVGP deployment at Camp Fuji so far.
The HVGP and upgraded Type 12 missile are only part of a broader effort to build a layered longer-range strike capability.
Japan plans to acquire or develop eight types of longer-range missiles, including domestically produced systems and foreign weapons. Among them are U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missiles, which the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force plans to deploy on modified Aegis destroyers.
Together, these systems will give Japan the ability to strike targets far beyond its immediate territory for the first time in the postwar era.
For Tokyo, the introduction of longer-range missiles reflects a broader strategic shift: from relying primarily on missile defense and homeland protection to building the capability to disrupt enemy attacks at their source.
How Japan balances that evolving military posture with domestic concerns and regional stability will likely shape the next phase of its defense policy.
Takahashi Kosuke is Tokyo Correspondent for The Diplomat.
Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile (HVGP)
Japan missile defense
Japan missile development
type 12 anti-ship missile