Japanese lawmakers voted Friday to allow the military use of space, breaking a decades-old taboo in the officially pacifist country which has an increasingly ambitious space programme. The move will remove any legal obstacles to building more advanced spy satellites.
Japan is considering revising its "Space Basic Law" to allow for the creation of an executive-level Space Strategy Headquarters that would promote the use of space for self-defense purposes. The move is seen as a response to the growing threat from North Korea.
Japan is planning to launch the third information gathering satellite in its planned system of four. The satellites will primarily watch North Korea's nuclear program and support its joint missile defense program with the U.S.
A committee of the Japanese governing party approved a proposal to allow the military use of the country's space program for the first time.
The Japanese Government is reviewing its space policy to consider lifting its self-imposed ban on deploying spy satellites. This editorial from the Daily Yomiuri advocates lifting this ban.
Japan is actively increasing its role in military space by jointly developing missile defense systems, new generations of military spy satellites, and planning for manned stations on the moon. The author argues that these developments risk igniting an arms race with China.
The author argues that U.S. technological leadership and "pre-eminent position as the world's sole superpower" is being eroded by increasing space power in China, Japan, and South Korea.
Japan has announced that it intends to launch a second pair of spy satellites that will boost its surveillance of missiles in hardline communist North Korea.
Amateur astronomers have established that the newly launched Japanese spy satellites are indeed being used to spy on North Korean territory.
Japan is preparing to launch two spy satellites with a resolution of around 1-yard in response to the growing missile threat from North Korea. The move is being questioned by Japanese officials who fear it may be in violation of Japan's constitutional restrictions on military preparations.