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The deployment of one of two new land-based anti-missile defense batteries developed by the United States to protect against North Korean attacks is expected to last about six years, officials said Monday. Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera told reporters that the installation of a battery of missiles Aegis Ashore would take a year longer than expected and that the Ministry of Defense should call Washington to cooperate for a faster deployment. The Lockheed Martin Corp. SSR Radar will cost 268 billion yen (2.4 billion dollars) alone.
Onodera said the batteries are vital to Japan's security because "the North Korean threat remains unchanged".
"We are not aware of any movement leading North Korea to abandon nuclear weapons and missiles," Onodera said.
The US side said that it would take about six years to deploy the first battery after "conclude a" The government is considering two zones of training of the Land Self Defense Force – in the prefectures from Akita and Yamaguchi – as candidate sites to install the system. He had sought to complete the first deployment in 2023. Officials say the two batteries will cover the entire Japanese archipelago.
The deployment plan has raised concerns among residents of both prefectures who fear that the stationary missile shields could become targets of terrorism
Local opponents say they also fear that heavy radio waves system radar may be harmful to human health.
The government decided to introduce ground-based missile defense systems at a government meeting in December after North Korea tested some 20 ballistic missiles in 2017, two of which flew over Japanese territory.
Meanwhile, a government source said Monday that despite lingering concerns over North Korea, the defense forces tasked with the operation of Patriot-3 advanced capacity missile interceptors in the west Japan and Hokkaido will be withdrawn.
PAC-3 anti-missile units were deployed along the trajectory of a North Korean ballistic missile if Pyongyang threatened its threat last year to attack the US territory of Guam.
Decision follows a decrease in tensions after the summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in mid-June in Singapore
Onodera told reporters that it was necessary to carry out repairs and maintenance of units as a year has passed since their deployment in the field. Aegis Japanese warships equipped with Standard Missile-3 interceptors has already been lowered. The Maritime Self-Defense Force no longer maintains them permanently in the Sea of Japan, but Defense Ministry officials say they're ready to launch within 24 hours if signs of launching A missile are detected. [19659016] LATEST NATIONAL STORIES
