LDP May Study Security Spending Hike to 3-5 Pct of GDP

Tokyo, May 14 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese ruling Liberal Democratic Party is poised to study a further hike in the country’s security-related spending by taking account of initiatives of other nations and regional alliances, including a plan by NATO to increase such outlays to 3-5 pct of gross domestic product. This is part of a draft set of issues that would be discussed for the Japanese government’s plan to revise its three key security-related documents by the end of this year. The draft was presented to Wednesday’s meeting of the party’s Research Commission on Security. A hike in security-linked spending is a focal point in the revision of the three documents–the National Security Strategy, the National Defense Strategy and the Defense Buildup Program. The commission hopes to draw up its proposals based on the draft for submission to the government in early June. At the commission meeting, some participants called for a numerical target to be set for the envisaged increase in security spending while others argued that financial resources for the hike should be shown at first. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has urged U.S. allies to increase their financial burdens in the defense field. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government achieved its target of raising the proportion of the country’s security spending, mainly including defense outlays, to its GDP to 2 pct at the end of last year, earlier than the initially planned fiscal 2027. Still, the Trump administration is demanding further efforts. NATO member countries aim to increase the proportion of core defense spending to GDP to 3.5 pct and the combined share of core spending and related expenditures to 5 pct, both by 2035. Australia and South Korea have set targets of raising the proportion of defense spending to GDP to 3 pct by 2033 and to 3.5 pct at the earliest possible time, respectively. The LDP draft said that Japan “should continue concrete and realistic discussions based on its own judgment while taking into account efforts (by NATO and others).” It also urged the government to “constantly work to strengthen the economic, financial and fiscal foundations, which are the fundamental bases of national security.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]