US approves sale of 400 Tomahawk missiles to Japan for $2.35 billion

Asia-Pacific, News, US November 19, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

The U.S. State Department has approved a potential sale of 400 Tomahawk missiles and their related equipment to Japan in a deal that is valued at around $2.35 billion. Tokyo plans to acquire the U.S.-made missiles in 2025, ahead of schedule.

According to a statement released by the Pentagon, Japan had requested to acquire 400 Tomahawk missiles along with 14 Tactical Tomahawk Weapon Control Systems, software, support equipment, spares, and technical support. The Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress of the possible sale after having a nod of approval from the U.S. State Department.

The notification says that the U.S.-based defense giant, Raytheon, would be the principal contractor for the weapons production. However, it did not indicate the negotiation and exact amount of the possible contract.

Japan has been focusing on expanding its military capabilities in the wake of China’s military modernization and North Korea’s increasing missile tests. Tokyo has extensively increased its military budget while forging stronger military ties with the U.S. and other regional powers to counter the emerging threats in the region.

The approval for sales comes days after U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping opened a presidential hotline, resumed military-to-military communications, and worked to curb fentanyl production, showing tangible progress in their first face-to-face talks in a year.

Deliveries before schedule

Last month, Japanese Defense Minister Kihara Minoru announced that Tokyo will start receiving the missiles from fiscal 2025 instead of 2026. The advancement has been made due to the “worsening” security situation in Asia.

During his meeting with the U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin last month, the Japanese Defense Minister asked his U.S. counterpart to hasten the deliveries of the Tomahawk missiles. The two defense chiefs reaffirmed their ironclad partnership in the meeting.

US Tomahawk cruise missile — *^{U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missile. (Image Credit: Reuters)}*

Tokyo’s original plan was to acquire the missiles starting from 2026 and 2027, to equip the Japanese naval fleet of Aegis destroyers. However, considering the ongoing security situation of the region, Japan is seeking to procure at least 200 Tomahawk Block IV missiles between fiscal 2025 and 2027. The second lot of 200 missiles will be of Block V and it will start in late 2027.

The Japanese Ministry of Defense has been actively working to improve the range of its domestically produced Type-12 surface-to-surface cruise missiles. The current range of these missiles is about 200 kilometers with a maximum range of up to 1000 kilometers. The Japanese Ministry of Defense’s project to enhance the range of these missiles is expected to be completed by 2026.

Tomahawk missiles are produced by American defense giant, Raytheon. According to Raytheon, U.S., and allied militaries have flight-tested the GPS-enabled Tomahawk missiles 550 times and used them in combat for more than 2,300 times. Its most recent use came in 2018 when U.S. Navy warships and submarines launched 66 Tomahawk missiles at Syrian chemical weapon facilities.

*^{The destroyer Dewey conducts a Tomahawk missile flight test while underway in the western Pacific. (Image Credit: MC2 Devin Langer/U.S. Navy)}*

Although the Japanese Type-12 cruise missile is also undergoing major upgrades, its main purpose remains to attack ships offshore. The introduction of the Tomahawk, a mainly land-attack cruise missile, would allow Japanese forces to attack enemy bases and other targets overseas. The move to purchase strike missiles is also controversial given Japan’s strict self-defense military policy.