EXCLUSIVE: Deployment of Island Defense Missiles Set for March 31

Tokyo, March 10 (Jiji Press)–The Defense Ministry plans to deploy long-range surface-to-surface missiles designed to defend remote islands at a Ground Self-Defense Force base in central Japan on March 31, Jiji Press learned Tuesday. According to the ministry, the Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile missile is a type of standoff missiles, which engage targets from outside their ranges. At Camp Fuji in the town of Oyama, Shizuoka Prefecture, the HVGP missile system will be operated by a special training unit. Also on March 31, the ministry will deploy the upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship guided missile system at the GSDF’s Camp Kengun in the southwestern city of Kumamoto. The moves will mark Japan’s first deployment of missiles that can be used for counterstrike operations. HVGP missiles travel at supersonic speeds from high altitudes and fly in irregular trajectories, making them difficult to intercept. The initial model of these missiles will have a range of several hundred kilometers, but an upgraded version is expected to have a range of 1,000 to 2,000 km, which is enough to reach China and Japan’s southwestern remote island chain from Camp Fuji. Additionally, the ministry plans to deploy the HVGP missile system at Camp Kamifurano in the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido and Camp Ebino in the southwestern prefecture of Miyazaki in fiscal 2026. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]