Japan Opens Defense Industry to Global Exports

Japan has lifted its prohibition on the export of lethal weaponry, opening its defense industry to global business for the first time in decades. The country maintained a pacifist security policy for years under a constitution established after World War II.

It has technically maintained no military although its Self-Defense Forces are more formidable than many foreign militaries. Until last month the government had forbidden the export of lethal weaponry. Japan is almost entirely dependent on the United States as a guarantor of its security and as a provider of military equipment.

Its defense industry has been sclerotic and uncompetitive because the Self-Defense Forces had been its only customer. The disintegration of the defense industrial base once seemed irreversible.

Japan is in its fourth year of a five-year plan to double its national defense budget from roughly $35 billion in 2022 to about $60 billion by 2027. In absolute terms Japan is now the ninth-biggest military spender in the world. Government contracts are now large enough for defense firms to turn a profit and more companies are seeking procurement deals.

The Ministry of Defense’s Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency is jointly developing a sixth-generation stealth fighter with Italy and the United Kingdom. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is building a new hypersonic glide vehicle and is constructing 11 Mogami-class warships ordered by Australia last year in a first-of-its-kind sale for Tokyo.

Minister Fumio Kishida laid the groundwork for policy changes in 2022. The changes have accelerated under Sanae Takaichi who became leader following a victory in snap elections in February. Under her leadership Japan’s arms industry is now open for global business according to Foreign Affairs.

Defense planners have shifted focus based on lessons from the war in Ukraine. Japan is spending more on cheaper mass-producible unmanned platforms the capacity to keep weapons operational in prolonged conflict and systems that can strike adversaries from safe distances.

The country is also increasing production of conventional munitions after observing rapid depletion of stockpiles in recent conflicts.

The defense expansion forms part of a strategy to revive the Japanese economy after decades of anemic growth by channeling investment into advanced manufacturing in aerospace shipbuilding and software. Japanese officials hope the investments will demonstrate to the Trump administration that Japan is taking on its share of the security burden.

If Japan can overcome challenges including lack of production capacity poor cybersecurity and economic dependence on China its defense revival could reshape the global arms market. The United States remains by far the world’s largest arms exporter but produces high-cost high-performance platforms that some buyers find prohibitively expensive.

Many potential customers now favor cheaper disposable options that can be produced in large quantities.

“Japan’s long-dormant defense industry is finally waking up.”