– Johannes Neudecker/dpa – Archives
MADRID, December 26 (EUROPA PRESS) –
Japanese authorities on Friday approved a record defense budget for fiscal 2026 to boost its “combat capabilities” amid growing tensions with China, representing a 9.4% increase on the previous year’s figures.
The government has estimated the amount intended to strengthen Japan’s ballistic and military program for the coming years at around 8.8 trillion yen (around 47.8 billion euros), now that Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is advocating a strengthening of defense, according to information from the Kiodo news agency.
Already during the electoral campaign, the Liberal Democratic Party (PLD) politician had promised to increase defense spending to 2 percent of GDP by next March, when Parliament will have to ratify the budget – and before the date initially estimated, which set the year 2027 to take this measure -.
This is part of statements made by Takaichi herself last November, when she assured that Japan would take “strong” measures if China attacked Taiwan, statements which caused a spike in tension with Beijing.
Japan’s Defense Ministry has expressed concern over “Chinese expansion in the Pacific” and said it could launch a “new unit” to deal with Beijing’s “activities” in the region.
CRITICISM OF BEIJING
China recently warned that an increase in the defense budget “challenges the notion that Japan seeks only a policy oriented toward defense” and “peaceful development.”
This Friday, the spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lin Jian, criticized Tokyo’s military advances. “Instead of showing moderation, Japan plans to significantly increase its defense budget, which once again shows its sinister intention to promote militarization,” he lamented, according to information from the ‘Global Times’ newspaper.
“Given Japan’s long and well-documented history of wartime aggression, its military and security activities have long been closely monitored by Asian countries and the international community,” he said.
In this sense, he criticized the Takaichi government which, “since coming to power”, has accelerated military strengthening and the expansion of armaments. “Japan is increasingly moving away from its traditional pretense of following a path of peaceful development and moving in a dangerous direction,” he argued.
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