China Refuses to Place US Missile System in Japan

ILLUSTRATION/US Navy

China has expressed "strong opposition" to the deployment of a US intermediate-range missile system in Japan, saying the move threatened regional security and increased the risk of military confrontation and an arms race.

"This step is detrimental to regional peace and stability in all aspects," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said at a press conference on Friday, May 22, reported by ANTARA from Kyodo.

Guo's statement came when asked for a response to a report that the US military plans to place the Typhon medium-range missile launcher in southwestern Japan for joint exercises in the period from June to September.

In Tokyo, Japan's Defense Ministry said the Typhon and High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) systems would be deployed at the Kanoya Air Base of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force in Kagoshima Prefecture during joint Japanese-US exercises, a move apparently aimed at deterring China.

The Typhon launcher is capable of firing Tomahawk cruise missiles with a range of about 1,600 kilometers, as well as SM-6 interceptor missiles with a range of more than 300 kilometers.

Meanwhile, HIMARS can carry up to six rockets or one Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) with a range of about 300 kilometers.

The ministry said that after the joint exercise was completed, the Typhon and HIMARS systems would be moved to US military bases in Japan.