Tokyo, Dec 25 (ANI): The Japanese government is planning to relax its decades-old restriction on weapons exports, a move that would help the nation's participation in future multinational arms development projects.
Japanese defense minister Yasuo Ichikawa said the official decision to relax the ban would be made by Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura on Tuesday.
He said that the government is likely to state that the joint development projects will be primarily associated with improving aged-machinery for Japan's Self-Defense Forces that are used by Japan during United Nation's peacekeeping operations.
Ichikawa also noted that Japan's involvement in joint weapons production with other countries would aid the Ministry of Defense's rising spending costs, Xinhua reports.
"Collaborations with other countries would help offset some of the huge costs associated with new, state-of-the-art defense technology," Ichikawa said.
"We will build a new framework. The cost of highly capable defensequipment has increased," he added.
Japan's self-imposed weapons ban dates back to 1967 and was introduced by then Prime Minister Eisaku Sato.
In 1976 the ban was heightened, although exceptions were made with weapons-related technologies being exported to the US in 1983, and joint projects on anti-missile hardware also conducted in collaboration with America. (ANI)
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