A 500 million euro drone shield: in “counter-attack” against China, Japan approves a record defense budget

A mess of records. Japan approved, this Friday, a record budget of 122.3 trillion yen (around 665 billion euros) for the fiscal year which begins on April 1, 2026. Among these figures, nearly 49 billion euros will be dedicated to defense, with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi wanting to accelerate the country’s military modernization in the face of deteriorating relations with China.

The Ministry of Defense estimated that “Japan faces the most serious and complex security environment since the end of the war”, emphasizing the need to “fundamentally strengthen” its defense capabilities.

“A space arms race”

In recent years, Japan has gradually abandoned its strict pacifist posture, equipping itself with “counterattack” capabilities and doubling its military spending to reach 2% of GDP.

The proposed budget also comes as China and Japan are locked in a feud following Sanae Takaichi’s suggestion in November that Tokyo could intervene militarily in the event of an attack on Taiwan. Beijing claims the island as an integral part of its territory and has not ruled out seizing it by force.

The budget includes 100 billion yen for the so-called “SHIELD” coastal system, designed to mobilize drones in the face of a possible invasion by foreign troops. Japan hopes that SHIELD will be completed by March 2028, with no details yet on the portion of the coastline concerned.

But this record could not be approved without a reaction from Beijing. China’s Defense Ministry responded at a regular press briefing that Japan’s recent space technology developments – some of which are made in cooperation with the United States – were “accelerating the weaponization and militarization of space and fueling a space arms race.”