Japan: record budget allocated to defense, fighter jets and cybersecurity on the program


The news is cause for concern in countries in conflict with Japan. The Japanese government unveiled on Friday a record annual budget equivalent to 830 billion euros for the 2022/23 fiscal year, which includes an envelope of an amount never before reached for the defense of the country, in a tense geopolitical context. The Japanese defense budget is increasing for the tenth consecutive year as tensions with China and the risks posed by North Korea are worrying in the archipelago.

Reaffirming its concern in the face of an “increasingly serious” regional security situation and deteriorating “at unprecedented speed”, the Japanese Ministry of Defense has thus requested for the next fiscal year starting on April 1, 2022 a record budget of 5,400 billion yen (41.7 billion euros). This budget, higher than the 5.3 trillion yen initially requested for the current fiscal year, includes an envelope of 127.8 billion yen for the purchase of 12 F-35 fighter jets.

The Defense Ministry also said it wanted to increase Japan’s defensive capabilities in space and in terms of cybersecurity. He also announced at the end of November his intention to seek an additional budget of 773.8 billion yen for the current fiscal year. In addition to these military spending, the total budget of 107.6 trillion yen (830 billion euros), unveiled by the government on Friday and which must be examined by Parliament at the start of next year, must also make it possible to partially finance the plan. massive stimulus from Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Coming to power at the beginning of October, the Japanese leader intends with this plan to give a boost to the world’s third-largest economy while the Covid-19 pandemic drags on. One of its flagship measures is the distribution of a sum of 100,000 yen (772 euros) to all 18-year-olds, except those from high-income families. Although the government wants to boost growth with this plan, some analysts are warning about the widening of Japanese debt, which already exceeds 250% of its GDP according to the International Monetary Fund.





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