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By Ryan Chan
China News Reporter
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A United States treaty ally in East Asia on Friday announced that it recently tested a new stealthy missile that is capable of conducting long-range attacks to sink hostile warships.
The Japanese Defense Ministry revealed the progress of the domestically developed Type 12 surface-to-ship missile with improved capabilities, which is claimed to have enhanced stand-off defense capabilities to intercept and eliminate invading forces against Japan.
The missile conducted its first round of launch tests from October 4 to November 1, including three for the ground-launched version and two for the ship-based version. Photos released by the ministry showed missiles being fired from vehicles and in flight.
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Stand-off weapons strike targets from outside the enemy's range. Their launch platforms, such as aircraft, ships, submarines and vehicles, release the weapons far from the targets, obviating the need for them to be positioned within the enemy's lines of defense.
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Japan's development of an upgraded ship-killing missile came amid the rapid expansion of the Chinese naval fleet. China, which is viewed by the U.S. military as a pacing challenge, has the largest navy in the world by hull count, with more than 370 ships and submarines.
The Chinese navy has also been expanding its area of operations in the Western Pacific Ocean in recent years, including in the Philippine Sea, the East China Sea, and the Sea of Japan (also known as the East Sea in South Korea), all of which border Japan.
Encounters at sea between Japanese and Chinese forces are common as Japan is part of the first island chain that extends to the Philippines via Taiwan. It is a U.S. defense concept that aims to leverage allied or friendly territories to contain the Chinese military.
In March, the Japanese military deployed a Type 12 surface-to-ship missile launcher on Okinawa in the country's southwestern waters for the first time. Okinawa is one of the key locations across the island chain, forming a north-south blockade against China.
In the event of an amphibious invasion on Japan's mainland or southwestern islands, the new missile will be used for destroying invading ships from a distance outside the range of the enemy, which protects the country's defense forces, the Japanese Defense Ministry said.
According to a previous report by the specialist outlet Naval News, the upgraded missile is designed with low observable features, commonly known as stealth technology. Its shape has been modified to reduce its reflectivity to radar waves and thus make it stealthy.
The original Type 12 missile can strike targets from 124 miles, while the improved missile will increase to no less than 559 miles and up to 745 miles.
While the original is classified as a surface-to-ship missile, the upgraded version can be launched from the ground, ships and aircraft, which are scheduled to complete respective developments in fiscal year 2025, 2026 and 2027, the defense ministry in Tokyo added.
In order to disrupt and defeat the invading forces early and from far away, Japan has also purchased 400 Tomahawk cruise missiles from the U.S. with a range of 1,000 miles. They will be acquired between 2025 and 2027, ahead of the original schedule.
"We will continue to work toward building stand-off defense capabilities as soon as possible," the Japanese Defense Ministry said in the press release on Friday.
Newsweek has reached out to the Chinese Defense Ministry for comment by email.
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