July 23, 2006 :: Kyodo :: News
Japan plans to deploy a total of six Aegis-quipped warships by the spring of 2008, reports
Kyodo. Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force has already deployed four Aegis destroyers, the
Kongou and
Choukai, both based in Sasebo, the
Myoukou in Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, and the
Kirishima in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture. A fifth warship, the
Atago, is to be commissioned next spring and deployed at Maizuru. A sixth Aegis destroyer is under construction in Nagasaki, and will be deployed at Sasebo after its completion in the spring of 2008. Five of the six Aegis warships will be deployed along the Sea of Japan to provide a defensive shield against the threat of ballistic missile attack from North Korea. All of Japan’s Aegis warships are currently equipped with SM-2 interceptors, although the MSDF is planning to upgrade them to SM-3 interceptors, capable of hitting ballistic missiles at a far higher altitude.
(Article)
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