TAIPEI, Taiwan — Japan's southern island of Kyushu, known for its volcanic landscape and tonkatsu ramen, has become ground zero for one of the greatest shifts in Japan's defense strategy since 1947, when it formally renounced the use of war to settle international disputes.

In late March, Japan deployed long-range missiles to Kumamoto Prefecture on the island's southwest coast. Unlike previous defense installations, these missiles could hit China, reflecting the fact that Beijing has ranked as Japan's top national security threat above North Korea and Russia since 2019.

Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters at the time that 'Japan faces the most severe and complex security environment in the post-war era' and the country must strengthen its 'deterrence and responsiveness.'

Known as the 'southern shield,' the new front in Japan's defense strategy has seen the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) deploy a range of weapons platforms as well as electronic warfare and air assets in southern Japan and its southwest outlying islands. 'The balance is changing. The defense posture has completely shifted towards the southwest, so the north is much less prioritized,' said Suzuki Kazuto, director of the Institute of Geoeconomics in Tokyo.

Much of Japan's growing defense budget, which hit a record $58 billion for fiscal year 2026, has been allocated towards this build-up. The strategy focuses heavily on the Nansei or Ryukyu Islands, which run from Kyushu to within 100 km (62 miles) of Taiwan. These islands form a natural barrier dividing the East China Sea from the Philippine Sea and are a critical part of the US-led 'First Island Chain' maritime defense strategy.

The 'southern shield' aims to create 'anti-access or area-denial layers along the First Island Chain, complicating potential Chinese operations near Taiwan or in the East China Sea,' said Jonathan Ping, a political economist at Australia's Bond University.

It also incorporates a major shift in Japan's defense policy towards acquiring 'counterstrike capability' that would allow the JSDF to hit back if attacked, stretching the legal definition of what constitutes 'self-defense.' JSDF members are legally classified as 'special national government employees' and until the end of the Cold War focused largely on humanitarian and disaster relief.

Their role began to change after the Gulf War, when Japanese politicians felt humiliated by their inability to offer military support to the US-led coalition, according to Soyoung Kim, an assistant professor at Nagoya University. Over the past decade, the Japanese government has slowly expanded the JSDF's legal remit, starting with a 2014 constitutional ruling that found Japan could participate in the 'collective self-defense' of its allies.

In 2022, Japan's national security strategy was expanded to include 'counterstrike capabilities.' As part of this strategy, Japan is due to acquire 400 US-made Tomahawk missiles. Tokyo will release the next phase of its national security strategy later this year, covering 2026 to 2030.

While some of these changes are a response to the rise of neighboring China, they also reflect growing concern in Tokyo about its longtime ally, the US, and its ability or willingness to defend its allies, say analysts. A 2025 survey by Japan's Asahi Shimbun indicated that 77 percent of respondents doubt that the US would protect Japan in a military crisis.

'Everything is focused on the American interest and American defense, so defending other countries is not the priority,' Suzuki told Al Jazeera. This has pushed Japan to shore up alliances with other US allies like the Philippines and Australia.

Source: www.aljazeera.com