The Defense Ministry plans to equip the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF)'s Aegis destroyer Chokai with a function to launch U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missiles, according to sources.
The ministry has requested ¥1.8 billion ($12.3 million) for the plan under the government's fiscal 2025 budget.
The Chokai, deployed at the MSDF's Sasebo base in Nagasaki Prefecture, will be the first Japanese Aegis destroyer equipped with a counterstrike capability. The government's National Security Strategy stipulates a policy for the country to possess counterstrike capabilities.
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