(Provisional translation by an external company for reference purpose only)
I have two announcements at the outset today. The first is about the deployment of domestically produced stand-off missiles to units. We have completed research and development of the surface-launched variant of the upgraded Type-12 surface-to-ship missile (SSM) and of the Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile (HVGP). Following the completion, we have decided to name the surface-launched variant of the upgraded Type-12 SSM as “Type-25 SSM” and HVGP as “Type-25 HVGP.” Today, we deployed them to our units at Camp Kengun in Kumamoto Prefecture and Camp Fuji in Shizuoka Prefecture, respectively. This marks the first deployment of domestically produced stand-off missiles to our units. Stand-off defense capabilities will enable Japan, which faces the most severe and complex security environment since the end of World War II, to ensure the safety of our personnel and take responses from outside the threat zone of an adversary’s units that are attempting to invade Japan. The deployment is crucial for reinforcing Japan’s deterrence and response capabilities. The Ministry of Defense will continue to take steps to swiftly build up Japan’s stand-off defense capabilities. At the same time, we will enhance the skills of units through training and other measures in order to reinforce Japan’s deterrence and response capabilities.
The second announcement is about the holding of a Japan-France Defense Ministerial Meeting. Tomorrow, I will hold a Japan-France Defense Ministerial Meeting with Minister for the Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs Vautrin of France for the first time since both of us took office. France is the only EU member state with armed forces stationed in the Indo-Pacific, having armed forces in New Caledonia and French Polynesia, and is an “Exceptional Partner” sharing common values and principles with Japan. Defense cooperation and exchanges with France are steadily deepening, including close cooperation between all services—ground, maritime, and air—in recent years. At the Defense Ministerial Meeting, we will hold wide-ranging discussions on matters such as security and defense cooperation between the two countries and the increasingly severe regional situation, and further strengthen bilateral cooperation while building our personal relationship. That concludes my two announcements at the outset.