Japan wants to buy hundreds of Harop attack drones and Switchblade kamikaze drones, inspired by Ukraine's experience

By: Maksim Panasovskiy | 16.09.2022, 15:42

Japan is watching Ukraine's war against Russia and is trying to learn from the experience of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Here's What We Know

Japan's Ministry of Defense is considering the purchase of unmanned aerial vehicles that Ukraine has used on the battlefield. In particular, we are talking about American Switchblade 300 bomber munitions. Tokyo also considers Israeli drones Harop company IAI (Ukraine has not received them) and keeps an eye on Turkish strike drones Bayraktar TB2.

The Land of the Rising Sun intends to purchase hundreds of combat drones in the next fiscal year. It starts in Japan on April 1, 2023. By 2025, Tokyo wants to have several hundred foreign or domestically made military drones. They will provide security for the Ryukyu Islands, which are near China.

The Defense Ministry has requested $41 billion (¥5.5 trillion) for fiscal year 2023 due to plans to purchase foreign drones. However, real defense expenditures may be increased by another $7 billion (¥1 trillion).

Source: The Eurasian Times

Image: Wikipedia