Japan, US to develop missile system in case of Taiwan emergency, says Kyodo By Reuters

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan and the U.S. are aiming to put together a joint military plan for possible contingencies in Taiwan that could include the deployment of missiles, Japanese media Kyodo reported on Sunday.

Under the plan expected to be signed next month, the US will send missile units to the Nansei islands southwest of Japan’s Kagoshima and Okinawa, and the Philippines, the report said, citing unnamed US and Japanese sources.

The US Marine Corps’ Marine Littoral Regiment, with High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and other weapons, will be sent to the Nansei Islands, Kyodo said.

The US space, cyberspace and electromagnetic division will be stationed in the Philippines, the report said.

Calls to Japan’s defense ministry and the U.S. and Philippine embassies in Tokyo were not returned Sunday.