Photo/Illutration A new ground-to-ship missile unit was deployed in the Ground Self-Defense Force’s Camp Katsuren in Uruma, Okinawa Prefecture, on March 21. (Taro Ono)

URUMA, Okinawa Prefecture--The Defense Ministry deployed its first ground-to-ship missile system in Okinawa’s main island to target “enemy” vessels.

The batteries were set up March 21 at the Ground Self-Defense Force’s Camp Katsuren.

The ministry is also considering deploying long-range missiles from the same location to give Japan the capability of countering an attack.

Officials said the move is part of a broader strategy to shift defense capabilities toward the southwest, viewed increasingly as strategically important due to rising tensions with China.

But there is strong local opposition to the move from residents in Okinawa already weary of the massive U.S. military presence in the southernmost prefecture and expansion of military bases.

The ground-to-ship missile unit is the sixth for Japan. A seventh will be deployed in Oita Prefecture by the end of fiscal 2024.

Also on March 21, an electronic warfare unit was set up at a GSDF camp in Yonagunijima island, also in the prefecture.

The new missile unit in Katsuren will function as the central command for missile units being deployed across the region, a ministry official said.

Plans are also under way to build a supply depot at a training ground in neighboring Okinawa city, where long-range missiles are expected to be stored.

The government is also considering deploying the improved Type 12 surface-to-ship missile, which has a longer range.

On March 21, about 60 local residents rallied outside Camp Katsuren to protest the deployment of the missile unit.

The government began the mass-production of Type 12 surface-to-ship missiles during this fiscal year just ending. Their deployment to as-yet-to-be-announced units will begin in fiscal 2025.

“I think the deployment of missiles with enemy base attack capability is a foregone conclusion,” said a 68-year-old female resident of Uruma. “But I can’t help but feel anxious when I think about being targeted by the enemy.”

A separate rally opposing plans to build a GSDF training site in Uruma was held the previous day with 1,200 participants that included Mayor Masato Nakamura.

The missile-related equipment arrived at the camp in the early hours of March 14.

“They should have offered satisfactory explanation to the prefecture, municipalities and residents,” Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki said the following day. “It is regrettable that the deployment is being carried out without following such procedures.”

Tamaki has accepted the deployment of the Type 12, but strongly opposes the deployment of long-range missiles.

(This article was written by Kaigo Narisawa, Taro Ono and Satsuki Tanahashi.)

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