BEIJING/WASHINGTON -- As Japan prepares to update its National Security Strategy this year for the first time since 2013, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party has issued a set of policy recommendations aimed at bolstering the country's defensive capabilities.
Highlights include a call for Japan to develop "counterstrike capabilities," and to double the defense budget to 2% or more of its gross domestic product. The document, compiled amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine and China's increasing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific, has drawn a mixed response from experts overseas.
