On August 29, the Japanese Ministry of Defense submitted a record defense budget request of $60.2 billion (8.8 trillion yen) for fiscal year 2026, which begins in April.
Plans include the establishment of the national multi-layered coastal defense system and the construction of one New FFM.
The defense budget request, which will be sent to the finance ministry to consider before making a decision in late December, calls for strengthening the nation’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) system and stand-off defense capabilities to counter rising military threats posed by China, North Korea, and Russia.
The budget requests related to the maritime domain are as follows:
The establishment of the national multi-layered coastal defense system called “SHIELD” ($876.3 million)
The defense ministry revealed plans to establish the overall coastal defense system called “SHIELD,” utilizing unmanned aircraft in the air, sea, and underwater, by fiscal 2027. The name stands for “Synchronized, Hybrid, Integrated and Enhanced Littoral Defense.”
The ministry said that it will acquire an unspecified number of surface ship-launched UAVs, small ship-based UAVs, and small multi-role USVs for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force to build SHEILD.
Defense officials said the plan would involve purchasing existing UAVs and USVs, primarily from foreign manufacturers, but did not reveal the names of the foreign companies involved, nor did they say which JMSDF vessels would be equipped with the drones.
Still, they said that surface-launched UAVs will attack enemy ships from JMSDF ships. Meanwhile, small ship-based UAVs will improve the intelligence gathering and surveillance capabilities of surface vessels, and will also be able to attack enemy vessels.
In early July, JMSDF official told Naval News that the U.S. aerospace and defense technology company Shield AI’s V-BAT is being considered as an UAV to be installed on the upgraded Mogami-class frigate, or New FFM.
In fact, the JMSDF has already decided to equip its new patrol vessels, with a standard displacement of 1,900 tons, with the V-BAT. Under the Defense Buildup Program adopted in December 2022, the MoD plans to acquire 12 patrol vessels over the next decade. The fiscal 2025 defense budget earmarks 4 billion yen for the procurement of six V-BAT systems for new patrol vessels.
In addition to purchasing additional MQ-9B SeaGuardian, which have already been decided for deployment to the JMSDF, the plan also includes the purchase of the inexpensive Turkish-made attack drone, the Bayraktar TB2, which costs about 700 million yen per unit.
In addition, the defense ministry requested $15.7 million to fund costs to conduct demonstration tests for simultaneous control of a large number of such various unmanned assets.
Construction of one New FFM ($713.9 million)
“Upgraded Mogami” / New FFM scale model at IODS 2024.
The defense ministry requested 104.8 billion yen ($713.9 million) to build one new multirole frigates, called “New FFM” in Tokyo. The new ships are upgraded Mogami-class multirole frigates of the JMSDF. It plans to construct a total of 12 New FFMs to be delivered by fiscal 2032.
Requesting construction costs for one New FFM in one year is very unusual because the MoD has so far earmarked the construction costs for two ships in the 2024 budget and three ships in the 2025 budget.
The move came as the Australian government selected the upgrade Mogami-class as the Royal Australian Navy’s future fleet of general purpose frigates in early August.
A Japanese defense official said during a press briefing on the fiscal 2026 budget request, “Following the selection of the New FFM by the Australian government, we coordinated with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Considering all the various factors together such as the JMSDF’s plan to decommission its ageing vessels, we decided to request one New FFM this time around.”
“It’s not a matter of prioritizing Japan or Australia, but rather, our defense posture is important to us, so we want to work hard to ensure that it is not affected [Ed. note: by Australia’s procurement plan],” the official stressed.
The MoD said the New FFM will be fitted with improved operational capabilities that can load longer-range missiles, enhanced anti-submarine capabilities, and better capabilities for various maritime operations.
The biggest difference between the New FFM and the Mogami-class is that the former has a larger hull, providing space for a larger number of missiles and giving it stronger anti-aircraft combat capabilities than the Mogami-class.
Specifically, the latest information is that the main armaments of the New FFM will be the improved Type 12 surface-to-ship missile (SSM), the new surface-to-air missile “NSAM,” the Type 23 ship-to-air missile “A-SAM,” and the Type 17 ship-to-ship guided missile (SSM), which is also installed on the Mogami-class. The number of cells in the Mk.41 vertical launch system (VLS) will also be doubled from 16 on the Mogami-class to 32.
Preparation for various tests of two Aegis system equipped vessels – ASEVs ($545.5 million)
Scale model of ASEV at DSEI 2025 exhibition in Tokyo (Credit: Author)
The MoD asked for 80.2 billion yen ($546 million) as expenses related to the acquisition of two Aegis system equipped vessels. Specifically, it made mention of costs associated with preparation for various tests.
The ASEVs are an alternative to the two land-based Aegis Ashore ballistic missile defense (BMD) system, which was cancelled in June 2020 during the Shinzo Abe administration over concerns that falling components from missile interceptors might hit heavily populated areas over Japan.
The defense ministry explained that the new ships will be 190 meters long, 25 meters wide, and have a standard displacement of 12,000 tons.
The MoD has not disclosed the ASEV’s full-load displacement, but military experts in Tokyo believe it to be over 16,000 tons, which is larger than the U.S. Zumwalt-class guided missile destroyer (DDG-1000) and China’s Nanchang-class destroyer, thus making it the world’s largest destroyer.
The JMSDF is expected to take delivery of the first ASEV during fiscal year 2027, with the second one in the following fiscal year.
Modifications of Izumo-class helicopter carriers（$195 million)
The JMSDF asked for 28.7 billion yen ($195 million) to continue modifying its two Izumo-class helicopter carriers – JS Izumo and JS Kaga – into aircraft carriers capable of enabling Lockheed Martin F-35B fighter aircraft operations.
As for the Izumo, the defense official said 900 million yen was allocated to install deck status lights on the ship, which allow deck workers to share the status of the deck, and to cover the test cost of the landing guidance system on the Izumo.
As for the Kaga, 27.7 million yen was requested to modify the hull of the hangar facility.
In addition, the MoD requested 100 million yen in research funds to compile the knowledge and lessons learned from the renovation of the Izumo-class destroyers and to sort out the technical challenges.
The MoD said JS Izumo‘s modification is scheduled to be completed in fiscal 2027, and JS Kaga‘s in fiscal 2028.
Acquisition of the ship-launched, improved version of the Type 12 SSM ($246.4 million)
The MoD began mass production of the long-range, ship-launched, improved version of the Type 12 SSM in the current fiscal 2025. It will start the deployment of it at the end of fiscal 2027.
Acquisition of submarine-launched missiles ($110.2 million)
The MoD asked for 16.2 billion yen ($110.3 million) to acquire the new submarine-launched missile.
It is a long-range cruise missile that can be launched from a submarine’s torpedo tubes. The MoD has been developing this anti-ship and land-attack missile as part of its stand-off defense capabilities since fiscal 2023. In April 2023, it announced that it had signed a contract with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to develop this submarine-launched missile. The development is expected to be completed in fiscal 2027.
The MoD explained that the missile will be installed on the JMSDF’s newest Taigei-class submarines.
Construction of one submarine($816 million)
The MoD requested 119.9 billion yen ($816 million) to build the 10th Taigei-class submarine, Japan’s latest diesel-electric submarine with a displacement tonnage of 3,000 tons.
Construction of two patrol vessels ($195 million)
The MoD requested 28.7 billion yen ($195 million) to build two 1,900-tonne patrol vessels, which can effectively conduct required surveillance in the seas surrounding Japan.
Adding Tomahawk launch function to two Aegis destroyers
The MoD requested 1.7 billion yen($11.6 million) to equip the JMSDF’s two Aegis destroyers Myoko (DDG-175) and Atago (DDG-177) with a function to launch U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missiles for fiscal 2026.
Defense officials said three Aegis destroyers, namely Chokai (DDG-176), Haguro (DDG-180), Kirishima (DDG-174) have already undergone for the addition of a Tomahawk launch function during this current fiscal 2025.
The JMSDF currently possesses a total of eight Aegis destroyers: four Kongo-class, two Atago-class, and two Maya-class. This means the remaining three JS Kongo(DDG-173), JS Ashigara(DDG-178) and JS Maya(DDG-179) will also be given Tomahawk capabilities in the near future.
The MoD allocated 2 billion yen in its fiscal 2025 budget for research on potential successors to four Kongo-class Aegis destroyers, or Kongo, Kirishima, Myoko, and Chokai, in stages in the 2030s.
Construction of one Awaji-class minesweeper ($232.8 million)
The MoD requested 34.2 billion yen ($232.8 million) to build a 690-tonne seventh Awaji-class minesweeper, which has improved capabilities to deal with various types of mines, including deepwater mines.
Co-development of the Glide Phase Interceptor (GPI) with the U.S.($ 378.6 million)
In August 2023, Japan and the United States agreed to start the joint development of the Glide Phase Interceptor (GPI), a next-generation missile defense system, specifically designed to shoot down hypersonic missiles. The two nations plan to complete development of the GPI by the 2030s.
In September 2024, the U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and the MoD in Tokyo selected Northrop Grumman over Raytheon as the prime contractor for the project. In November 2024, the MoD announced that it has signed a contract worth 56 billion yen with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to develop the GPI.
The Japanese side will be primarily responsible for developing the second-stage rocket motor and second-stage steering system, as well as the steering gear, rocket motor, and seeker window for the front part of the missile called the kill vehicle.
Meanwhile, the United States will be in charge of the first-stage booster, the third-stage rocket motor, the kill vehicle’s outer shell, guidance control device, and seeker. It will also be in charge of the overall system integration.
AloJapan.com