Japan weighs allowing Patriot missiles transfer to US
Japanese authorities, as part of the upcoming relaxation of arms export rules, is considering exporting domestically made Patriot surface-to-air guided missiles to the US, TASS reports
According to the Kyodo news agency, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said at a press conference in Tokyo that Japan intends to allow the supply of all defence equipment manufactured under foreign licenses to the countries where the patent holders are based. Current regulations allow the export of defence equipment for rescue, transportation, surveillance and mine clearance purposes. Moreover, Japan can supply military systems and technologies only to those countries with which it jointly develops and produces them. In fact, only the US now falls into this category.
It is reported that the Japanese Self-Defence Forces are armed with about 80 types of licensed vehicles and equipment, including lethal weapons. About 30 of them are licensed in the USA, the rest are in other countries, including the UK and Germany.
As the Nikkei newspaper notes, the change in export regulation includes a clause stating that Japan will allow its partners to supply equipment they receive to third countries or regions with prior permission, if these states and regions are not actively involved in an armed conflict. This means, e.g., that the United States will be able to send Japanese-made equipment to Europe, thereby replenishing stocks of ammunition and weapons depleted as a result of assistance to Ukraine.
