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Japan opens door to global arms market with biggest export rule change in decades
The revised rules keep strict screening while allowing all defense equipment, as Japan seeks to strengthen its industrial base and expand sales abroad.
- On Tuesday, April 21, 2026, the Cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi endorsed scrapping a ban on lethal weapons exports, removing five categories that previously limited military sales to non-lethal equipment.
- Tokyo aims to strengthen its defense industrial base by boosting production volumes and lowering per-unit costs while deterring threats from China near East China Sea islands.
- Contractors like Mitsubishi Heavy Industries can now build advanced systems for foreign markets, with nations including Poland and the Philippines exploring procurement opportunities and Japan developing a next-generation fighter with Britain and Italy.
- Global conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East are straining weapons production, expanding opportunities for Japan as allies seek to diversify supply amid uncertainty under President Donald Trump.
- Critics argue the change violates Japan's pacifist constitution, though the government will maintain three export principles requiring strict screening while Ministers assess the merits of each proposed sale individually.
57 Articles
57 Articles
Tagesschau
The Japanese government has largely lifted its historical restrictions on arms exports abroad. In the future, the country will be allowed to sell arms classified as "lethal weapons".[more]]>
Japan scraps a ban on lethal weapons exports in a change of its postwar pacifist policy
Japan is scrapping a ban on lethal weapons exports, a major change of its postwar pacifist policy as the country seeks to build up its arms industry and deepen cooperation with defense partners. The approval Tuesday by Prime Minister Sanae…
And from now on, he's a little less pacifist.
Japan overhauls decades-old weapons export rules
TOKYO — Japan will ease decades-old arms export rules, the government’s top spokesman Minoru Kihara said on Tuesday, a policy shift that paves the way for the sale of lethal weapons overseas. The new rules end Japan’s self-imposed curb on sales of lethal arms as Tokyo seeks to enter the international arms market, hoping to bolster national defense as well as boost economic growth. It comes as anxiety increases over China’s escalating military ac…
Japan approves scrapping ban on lethal weapons exports
Tokyo: Japan on Tuesday endorsed scrapping a ban on lethal weapons exports, a major change of its postwar pacifist policy as the country seeks to build up its arms industry and deepen cooperation with defence partners.The approval by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Cabinet of the new guideline clears a final set of hurdles for Japan's postwar arms sales and facilitate its future sale of weapons such as a next-generation fighter jet and combat dr…
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