KBS World Radio
A Japanese official says that final tests will be held next year on the SM-3 Block 2A interceptor missile which is being jointly developed with the U.S. to defend against North Korean ballistic missiles.
Hideaki Watanabe, commissioner of Japan’s Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency made the remark Wednesday while speaking at the Hudson Institute in Washington.
He said that Japan faces the reality of North Korea developing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles and China rapidly increasing its military power and acting unilaterally in the South and East China Seas.
Watanabe said such actions raise tensions and pose a serious security threat to Japan.
The commissioner said that if South Korea-Japan relations improve through government dialogue, partial cooperation with Seoul will be possible under directions and guidelines.
He added there is room for bilateral cooperation in developing defense technologies.
The SM-3 Block 2A interceptor missile is an advanced version of the Block 1A missile which is equipped on the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s Aegis destroyers. Tokyo and Washington have been jointly developing the enhanced weapon since 2006 to improve the range and accuracy rate associated with North Korean ballistic missile defense.
