Fear of arms race as Japan seeks to acquire missiles with enough range to strike N’Korea

Angered, ruffled and disturbed by the continued threat of North Korea’s missile activities, Asian giants, Japan is seeking to acquire missiles with enough range to strike Pyongyang’s missile sites.

Reports say Japanese authorities are setting aside funds in its next defence budget to acquire F-15 fighters which could launch longer-range missiles including Lockheed Martin Corp’s extended-range Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM-ER), which can hit targets 1,000 km (620 miles) away.

A source with knowledge of the plan said; “There is a global trend for using longer range missiles and it is only natural that Japan would want to consider them.”

The source also revealed that Japan is also interested in buying the 500 km-range Joint Strike Missile designed by Norway’s Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace to be carried by the F-35 stealth fighter.

Read also: Trump hits out at FBI over Russia meddling inquiry

Last week, a call on all countries to severe ties with North Korea over its continued missile activities made by the US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley was rejected by Russia.

Speaking moments after Haley made the call, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov while fielding questions from journalists in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, said; “We perceived this negatively.”

The call by Haley was made a day after defiant North Korea fired it’s first missile since September 15 which it claimed could reach mainland USA.

Haley sternly warned North Korea’s leadership saying it would be “utterly destroyed” if war were to break out.

The US Department of Defense after an initial assessment of the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) fired by North Korea said the missile is capable of carrying nuclear warheads and could reach the mainland of the United States.

 

 

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