Japan’s defence budget grew by 2.1% for the 2019 fiscal calendar to a new seven-year high of $47 billion. Much of the money goes to securing ‘remote islands’ from Chinese attack, and building safeguards against North Korea’s nuclear and missile capabilities.
Approved by the MoD on 31 August, the budget still needs parliamentary and cabinet approval, though barriers appear unlikely with increased Chinese naval and air power projection in the East China Sea and continued fears over North Korea.
Though the report never mentions the Senkaku Islands by name, with references only to the ‘southwestern region’ or ‘remote islands’,
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The initial document focused more on creating the right partnerships and inspiring investment in defence than on any details of how future UK Armed Forces would be armed.
The first stage of developing a new UK Defence Industrial Strategy has highlighted failings in current structures with solutions expected to be proposed in next year’s full strategy.
Romania joined NATO more than two decades ago and the country is vital to the alliance’s geographic reach and its ability to supply Ukraine with weapons.
Although Trump’s geopolitics policy for Europe remains unclear, defence analysts from the US and Europe predict how his incoming administration would attempt to handle critical issues on the continent.
The UK budget announced in Parliament on 30 October was the first by a Labour government in 14 years which has also launched a review into defence procurement programmes.
The Australian government has placed a focus on Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance (GWEO) which has included the purchase of additional long-range rocket systems and investments in local production of missiles.
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