Japan Greenlights Historic USD58B Defense Budget for 2026
The proposed allocation for fiscal 2026, which launches in April and encompasses expenses for hosting US military installations, exceeds the prior record of 8.7 trillion yen ($55.7 billion) designated for the current fiscal period concluding in March 2026, a news agency reported.
Fiscal 2026 represents the fourth installment of Japan's ambitious five-year 43-trillion-yen ($275 billion) defense modernization initiative.
The spending plan dedicates 100.1 billion yen ($641 million) toward advancing the "Shield" multilayered coastal defense architecture integrating aerial, surface and underwater platforms.
The nation is simultaneously expanding its unmanned systems investment, including 1.1 billion yen ($7 million) to evaluate long-endurance drones designed to counter airspace intrusions.
To bolster its extraterrestrial defense capabilities, Japan intends to rebrand the Air Self-Defense Force as the Air and Space Self-Defense Force, committing an additional 1.1 billion yen toward acquiring equipment to monitor satellite interference.
The budget further allocates 30.1 billion yen ($193 million) for acquiring hypersonic guided missiles as a counteroffensive capability.
China swiftly condemned the defense spending increase, accusing Tokyo of militaristic intentions.
"Despite recent international criticism over the latest military and security developments in Japan, the Japanese side has shown no inclination to mend its conduct and instead plans to again hike the defense budget, further revealing Japanese right-wing forces' motive to remilitarize Japan and resurrect militarism," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said during a news conference in Beijing in response to the increase.
Separately, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Cabinet approved a draft preliminary state budget reaching 122.3 trillion yen ($783 billion) for the fiscal year commencing next April—the largest in the nation's history.
Japan's defense expansion accelerates as bilateral tensions with China have intensified since Nov. 7, when Takaichi declared a Chinese attack on Taiwan could legally constitute a "survival-threatening situation," potentially allowing Japan to exercise the right of collective self-defense.
Her statements provoked severe retaliation from Beijing, with China advising against travel to Japan and reimposing a ban on imports of seafood, among other restrictive measures.
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