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Defence & Security News - Japan
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| Japan achieves deployment of its 24 Patriot air defense missile batteries | |||
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Japan has completed the deployment of 24 Patriot missiles at 15 bases around the nation to guard against possible ballistic missile launches by North Korea. Japan's Ministry of Defense said Wednesday that it deployed two Patriot missiles at its Air Self-Defense Force base in Chitose, Hokkaido, completing the nation’s Patriot missile installation project, which it undertook in 2004.
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 PAC-3 batteries remain on alert outside the Japan Self-Defense Ministry in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo |
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Kyodo News reported Wednesday that including the two newly deployed missiles, there are 24 Patriot missile systems at 15 bases around Japan's islands from Okinawa to Hokkaido. PAC-3 batteries have also been deployed to four places near Tokyo, including the SDF’s Narashino camp in Chiba Prefecture and the Iruma Base in Saitama.
JSDF actually have 6 Patriot groups, each one operating 4 PAC-2 or PAC-3 batteries. Japan purchased the PAC-3 version of the Patriot missile launchers from the United States during the past decade to face just such a threat. A first batch of 16 PAC-3 missiles were bought in 2006 for $144 mn. As well as Japan and US, Patriot is in service in Egypt, Germany, Greece, Israel, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia and Taiwan. |
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