Up to six U.S Marine Corps MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles will operate from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa for a year to carry out Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions around the southwest region of Japan, according to a Japan Ministry of Defense and Foreign Ministry public explainer document released Tuesday.
The Japenese MOD’s standard practice is to release explainers to the public about the deployment of Japanese and foreign military assets that will operate from bases near Japanese cities and towns to assuage residents of such areas on safety and noise concerns.
Since the deployment of U.S. Air Force (USAF) MQ-9 Reaper UAVs to Kadena Air Base in November last year, the security environment surrounding Japan has grown even more severe, making it more important than ever to further strengthen Japan-U.S. ISR capabilities. During the Japan-U.S. 2 plus 2 meeting in July this year, the two countries agreed to further increase ISR cooperation.
China has rapidly expanded and intensified its activities in the sea and airspace surrounding Japan, particularly in the East China Sea. Chinese Coast Guard ships conducting intrusions in Japanese waters around the Senkaku Islands. North Korea continues its illegal maritime activities, including ship-to-ship transfers of goods and material that are under sanctioned by the United Nations. Russia and China have conducted joint flights of bombers in the East China Sea and elsewhere.
The document did not say when the one year deployment will begin, though the Reapers have already been deployed to Kadena. A U.S. Marine photo showed them being unloaded from a USAF C-17 on Aug. 13.
The Marine Corps Reapers are assigned to Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron (VMU) 3, Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 24, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW). VMU-3 recently participated in the RIMPAC 2024 exercise, carrying out multi-intelligence reconnaissance, supporting operations such as the live-fire sinking exercises, naval surface escort missions, photo exercises, visit board search and seizure training, and serving as the command-and-control node for the amphibious landing during RIMPAC 2024.
The MOD document also stated that the Marine Corps Reapers, like their USAF counterparts at Kadena Air Base, will be unarmed with no plans for them to be armed while stationed at Kadena Air Base.
Currently, eight USAF Reapers and two U.S. Navy MQ-4 Triton UAVs operate from Kadena Air Base, with the Tritons scheduled to end their deployment to Kadena in October and returning to Guam. The USAF Reapers are on an indefinite deployment schedule.
The security of Japan’s southwest islands from the threat posed by China, particularly around the Senkaku Islands held by Japan and claimed by China, has been of concern to the current Kishida administration, which in 2022, released new strategic documents to guide Japan’s defense strategy and defense capability building. They included plans to develop along with accelerating research and production of long-range missiles and loitering munitions used for defense of Japanese islands.
Japan and the U.S have agreed to increase both presence and exercises in Japan’s southwest region, while Japan has been progressively deploying additional troops along with ground units armed with anti-ship missiles on the islands in the region. The Japan Maritime Self Defense Force plans to procure a UAV to conduct ISR missions with the service currently conducting trials since July this year around the East China Sea with a single MQ-9B Sea Guardian UAV operating out of JMSDF Kanoya Air Base on the main island of Kyushu.
In a Tuesday press conference, Japan Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said that the JMSDF had been conducting verification of the Sea Guardian’s operation with simulated alert surveillance in the East China Sea. The trials will end in September.
He added that the MOD and JMSDF were using the experience gained from the trials to guide their selection for the UAV type to be procured for the JMSDF. It is considering the possibility of using UAVs in the future for surveillance and monitoring in the East China Sea as well as in other locations, based on the knowledge gained for the trials.
In response to a question on Monday’s intrusion of Japanese airspace above the Danjo Islands, Kihara said the action was a threat to Japan’s security.
“The violation of our airspace by Chinese military aircraft is not only a serious violation of our sovereignty, but also a threat to our security, and is completely unacceptable,” the Japanese defense chiefsaid, according to a transcript of the press conference.
Kihara added that the Japanese government had lodged a protest on the incident through diplomatic channels and strongly urged China to prevent a reoccurrence of it. He added that it was difficult to give a definite answer as to the intention and purpose of the Chinese aircraft, but the MOD will continue to watch China’s military movements and will take all possible measures to monitor and respond to airspace violations.
On Wednesday, during the China Ministry of Foreign Affairs daily press conference, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian said, “China and Japan are maintaining communication on this matter. I would like to reiterate that Chinese military aircraft have no intention of intruding into the airspace of any country,” according to a transcript of the press conference.
