The Japanese Self-Defense Forces are keen on defending against electromagnetic pulse weapons that China will deploy.
Japan's Self-Defense Forces Prepare for Countermeasures
The Ministry wants to develop defenses against EMP attacks in place at five Japan Air Self-Defense Force bases by the fiscal year 2029. These are needed for the defense capabilities of Self-Defense Force facilities, as noted by Yahoo.
Meanwhile, new subterranean command centers would be constructed at the Naha base of the Ground Self-Defense Force in Okinawa Prefecture, the Yonaguni base in Okinawa Prefecture, the Kengun base in Kumamoto Prefecture, and the Maizuru Regional Defense Bureau of the Maritime Self-Defense Force in Kyoto Prefecture. Deployment and ordering of troops and vessels used in an enemy attack can be launched from these bases.
They were given special consideration because Naha and Yonaguni are near Taipei, where China has already stepped up political pressure. Tokyo is worried that both Pyongyang and China are developing a means to deliver a crippling magnetic attack on all electronics, The EurAsian Times reports.
Exploding nuclear devices in the air at an altitude that will disperse a strong EMP pulse can knock out vital electronic systems such as radars and radio equipment.
Jet fighters are grounded and cannot fight in the air without radar guidance from ground control. One way to stop this is to place EMP filters to buffer the electrical components. One of the first bases to use these anti-pulse defenses was the Nyutabaru Air Base in Miyazaki Prefecture. These systems are distributed on major air bases that need to survive.
National Security Strategy, authorized by the Cabinet on December 16, declared that major defense facilities would be upgraded to substantially improve the nation's defense capabilities.
For initiatives, including building underground command centers, the administration has allocated a budget of roughly 36.4 billion yen in the preparatory spending plan for the coming financial year. Site surveys and other tasks will be conducted as soon as possible.
Mostly in Yonaguni and Ishigaki, the government is looking to acquire land to build structures that will be used for Self-Defense Forces training, evacuation procedures, refuges for locals, and other operations.
Japan Threatened with Electromagnetic Pulse Attacks
This energy-based EMP weapon emits a strong magnetic wave that is detrimental to non-hardened electronic systems. There have been rumors that China has EMP weapon systems and has evolved guidelines for launching a first-strike attack.
Energy-based offensive weapons such as this will tactically hamper the use of all electronics, such as communications and radar apparatus, in combat zones. Tokyo is dealing with this type of energy weapon via several measures that it thinks are applicable.
An Expert on EMP warfare, Dr. Peter Pry, remarked on how China developed these weapons, which is a crucial element of its Total Information Warfare, including computer hacking raids. He is sure that Beijing wants to let loose a "high-altitude electromagnetic pulse," or HEMP, weapons from satellites, ships, and land, as mentioned in Scribd.
Despite having genuine complaints about EMP impacts, the system is still seen as an unproven tool with restricted missile expertise, which lessens the danger. The Japanese Self-Defense Forces want to defend against electromagnetic pulse weapons that China is developing for offensive use.