Gov't To Fund JPY1trn Of Boost In Defence Spending w/Tax Hikes-Kyodo

Kyodo News reporting that of the JPY5trn (USD36bn) increase in defence spending planned for 2023-27, around JPY1trn (USD7.3bn) of these funds would come from tax rises.

• AKyodo storyfrom earlier on 7 Dec states that, "Japan is considering spending around 5 trillion yen to develop and deploy long-range missiles from fiscal 2023 to 2027, government sources said Tuesday, as the nation aims to possess an enemy base strike capability to address growing security threats."
• The additional funding would be used to develop, "homemade "standoff missiles," capable of being launched from beyond the range of enemy fire, [that] will be central to what the government calls a "counterstrike capability," amid China's military buildup and North Korea's repeated ballistic missile launches,"
• PM Fumio Kishida and his governing centre-right Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has set the target of doubling Japan's defence expenditure to around 2% of GDP, seeking to put the country on a par with NATO spending requirements. Japan's defence expenditure has historically been around 1% of GDP and focused on defensive capabilities.