MOSCOW, Aug 27 The world's largest arms manufacturers, including US and European companies, are moving their operations and production facilities to Japan as Tokyo prepares for a possible increase in defense budgets, the publication reports. Nikkei Asia.
In early August, the Kyodo news agency, citing informed sources, reported that the Japanese Ministry of Defense may request a record 7 trillion yen ($48.92 billion) defense budget for fiscal year 2024.
«Biggest defense contractors around the world are moving their Asian operations to Japan as Tokyo braces for a sharp increase in defense spending in the face of a deteriorating security situation in East Asia,» the newspaper writes.
It is noted that among them are the British company BAE Systems, which by the end of this year will transfer oversight of its operations in Asia from Malaysia to Japan, and the American company Lockheed Martin, which has already moved its Asian headquarters from Singapore to Japan. In addition, the French company Thales has teamed up with the Japanese Mitsubishi in the development and production of mine detectors. And US aerospace and defense contractor L3Harris Technologies opened a subsidiary in Japan last year to meet manufacturing needs, including drones.
According to the publication, such an influx of defense companies from other countries could seriously hit local manufacturers, which are currently «barely breaking even».