China and Russia’s joint military activities around Japan are of “grave concern” and North Korea poses a greater threat than ever, Tokyo’s Defence Ministry said Friday, July 12, 2024.

In its annual white paper, the Ministry outlined its stance on a range of issues, from tensions around Taiwan to the intensifying rivalry between China and the United States.

Repeated joint sorties by Chinese and Russian ships around Japan “are clearly intended as a demonstration of force against Japan and are a grave concern from the perspective of national security,” it said.

North Korea, meanwhile, which often conducts missile tests in Japan’s direction, poses a “more grave and imminent threat to Japan’s national security than ever before”.

In previous years, the defence paper has raised the need to counter regional threats including growing Chinese military clout and a nuclear-armed North Korea.

Japan plans to double its defence spending to the NATO standard of two per cent of GDP by 2027, although the falling value of the yen may dent its purchasing power.

‘Strategic challenge’

This year’s paper noted that Beijing has regularly sent ships to areas near disputed islands in the East China Sea — reiterating that China’s military ambitions are “the greatest strategic challenge” to Japan and the world.

It seems China intends to make increased military activities around Taiwan a new normal for the region, said the paper, which also listed heightened defence risks associated with AI, cybersecurity, and disinformation.