Welcome to Issues in Japan.
Japan Should Focus on Increasing Indigenous Defense Production (Part 1)
(to be continued in Part 2)
The government of Japan is planning to release a new National Security Strategy (NSS), as well as release updates to the National Defense Program Guidelines (NDPG) and Medium-Term Defense Program (MTDP) by the end of this year.
The process of updating these strategic documents naturally invites a lively policy debate regarding defense procurement and the most timely and efficient way for Japan to acquire advanced capabilities.
This time I would like tentatively to share some of the insights of Mr. Masashi Murano, Japan Chair fellow at the Hudson Institute, and Mr. Chuck Jones, Former Chief Executive for Lockheed Martin Japan.
The theme is:
Japan Should Focus on Increasing Indigenous Defense Production, analyzing Japan’s defense industry and the prospects for increasing indigenous defense production.
Mr. Masashi Murano argued in favor, while Mr. Chuck Jones argued against.
First, let me introduce Mr. Masashi Murano's position.
After World War II, Japan's defense industry was revitalized through licensed production, which introduced advanced foreign defense technologies for Japan to manufacture domestically.
Including licensed production, almost 90 percent of the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) equipment was indigenously produced until recently.
However, today, the benefits once achieved through licensed production are no longer available.
This is because as defense systems have become more technologically sophisticated and more costly, international joint development and production have become the trend, and license-holding countries have been more reticent to release the license of defense equipment containing sensitive and critical technologies.
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