Foreign
Japan’s prime minister seeks to increase defense budget to 2% of GDP in fiscal year 2027-
Prime Minister
– Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday demanded that cabinet ministers increase Japan’s defense budget to around 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the fiscal year of 2027.
As Japan moves to expand its defense budget in the year beginning April 2027, Kishida gave those instructions to Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada and Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki on Monday.
This is the first time that Kishida has declared the specific level of defense costs, local media reported.
Japan’s initial budget for fiscal year 2022 accounted for 1 percent of GDP at 5.4 trillion yen (about US$39.3 billion).
The government will determine the size of the budget and guarantee funding for the next five years at the end of December, seeking a change in Japan’s post-World War II security strategy, according to Nikkei Asia. ■
(Xinhua)
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