Japan pursuing full-scale rearmament, says Global Times ( Copy Right @ The Want China Times)

JS Izumo ( Image credits- Wikimedia commons/ Dragoner JP)

During his visit to San Diego, Itsunori Onodera, Japan's defense minister, inspected US amphibious assault ships, indicating Japan may be mulling introducing the ships to defend the disputed Diaoyutai (Senkaku or Diaoyu) islands against a potential attack from the People's Liberation Army, according to the Tokyo-based Kyodo News.

The website of China's nationalistic Global Times, on the other hand, stated that Japan is buying military equipment under the guise of concerns over the disputed East China Sea islands, while in reality they are using this as an excuse to equip the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force at a time when Japan's government has reinterpreted its pacifist postwar constitution to loosen the country's restrictions on the use of its armed forces.

Onodera was reportedly very interested in amphibious assault ships, saying that they are useful in disaster rescue missions. The Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD-8) which Onodera inspected is 258 meters in length and 32 meters wide, with a full displacement of 41,649 tons, and a mast speed of 25 knots. The ship can carry 1,687 marines, 12 Landing Craft Mechanized (LCM)-6 or 3 Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) amphibious landing vehicles plus 4 massive personnel landing craft. Forty-two airplanes and helicopters can be carried on the ship–mainly CH-46 transport helicopters, CH-53E heavy-lift cargo helicopters, and 6-8 AV-8B and F-35B fighters–along with 20 AV-8B air fighters, according to Global Times.

Japan has been showing interest in purchasing a large amount of new military hardware lately, including the V-22 Osprey multi-mission tiltrotor aircraft.

The paper reported that the 15th Brigade of the Japan Ground Self Defense Force stationed at Naha in Okinawa, are just four hours away by ship from the Diaoyutai (as they are known in Taiwan), while a V-22 Osprey stationed at the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma,would take only one hour to reach the islands. If a V-22 Osprey were deployed to the Western Army Infantry Regiment, which specializes in defending remote islands in Japanese territorial waters, based in Sasebo, Nagasaki, it would take two and half an hours to reach the islands.

The highly anticipated Japanese-made Type 10 tank is the replacement for the Type 90 tank with a total upgrade in defense, firepower and mobility. It is the sole replacement in the past decade for developed countries. Type 10 tanks weighs only 44 tons, six tons lighter their predecessor, and they are equipped with hydraulic mechanical transmissions which allows them to adjust their stance and absorbs recoil when firing, useful for island fighting.

Retaking the Diaoyutai in the event of an occupation by Chinese forces would not require a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship, however, suggesting Japan has bigger ambitions, Global Times says.

USS Makin Island (LHD-8) is capable of accommodating far more air fighters than Kuznetsov class aircraft carriers. The advantage of the Kuznetsov class carrier lies in the Su-33 it can carry. If Japan was in possession of a ship similar to the USS Makin Island (LHD-8), and it was carrying an F-35B, it would most likely be able to get the upper hand, however.

Onodera also expressed an interest in purchasing the F-35 on a large scale on July 9. The paper stated that as Japan is technically advanced enough to develop amphibious assault ships by itself, the purchase of them from the US is a diplomatic strategy aimed at gaining US support in the hope of future military cooperation in setting up a sea base to protect its marine possessions.

With an amphibious assault ship, Japan can be more aggressive in any potential regional conflict.

The paper suggested that the Type 10 tank is not very practical for use on the rocky Diaoyutai, and that the MV-22 or the CH-47 helicopter would be better suited to protecting the islands.

A Chinese military expert told a reporter from the website that it is not necessary to control the islands to win them, and that controlling the nearby airspace and sea territory is crucial thing, suggesting that China develop and deploy air-to-air missiles as well as its anti-submarine capability. China could also make use of its advantage in ballistic missiles and cruise missiles to gain control of the Diaoyutai, he said.

Original link to the article: http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-subclass-cnt.aspx?id=20140710000126&cid=1101