The Strategist

Japan sets to upgrade missile defense system to intercept North Korean missiles



12/30/2019 - 04:09



Next year, the Japanese Ministry of Defense plans to begin modernizing its missile defense system to ensure the ability to intercept North Korean ballistic missiles, the Sankei newspaper reported.



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pixabay
According to the publication, it is planned to improve the existing Japanese missile defense system, equipped with SAM-4 medium-range anti-aircraft missiles. It is expected that the modernization work will take at least three years. 

The newspaper indicates that the modernization will be carried out so that the Japanese missile defense systems can intercept North Korean short-range ballistic missiles created on the basis of the Russian Iskander missile. The complexes at Tokyo are currently not capable of intercepting low-flying missiles, that can unexpectedly change the flight path. 

This year, North Korea conducted 13 missile tests. The country also excluded denuclearization from the agenda of negotiations with the United States and promised Washington a "Christmas present." 

source: sankei.com