US Navy USS Shoup (DDG86), left, and Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSDF) frigate JS Noshiro, passes by Philippine Navy ship BRP Jose Rizal during the Philippines United States Japan Multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity off a disputed South China Sea shoal on Friday, March 28, 2025. - AP
TOKYO: The contours of Japan’s war plans are becoming clearer as the Defence Ministry in recent weeks launched its Joint Operations Command, or JJOC, and confirmed its first evacuation plans for Okinawa civilians.
Japan has, in recent years, already been deploying missile units to its south-west to bolster its so-called “counterstrike capabilities”. As the next step, it intends to station surface-to-air missiles on Yonaguni – Japan’s westernmost point, located 2,000km from Tokyo but just 110km from Taiwan.
