The Japanese government plans to deploy surface-to-air missiles on one of its remote western islands near Taiwan by March 2031, as announced by the Japanese defense minister on Tuesday. The ministry had announced this plan in 2022 to bolster its air defenses on the island, which hosts a Japanese military base. Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara stated at a regular press conference in Tokyo that the deployment of missiles on Yonaguni Island will take place during the fiscal year 2030, which ends in March of the following year. This is the first time Japan has set a specific date for deploying these missiles. These remarks come amid months of ongoing tensions between Japan and China.
