Typhon warning: China hits out at Japan over US missile system deployment
Japanese media says system will be used in joint large-scale training exercise next month before being withdrawn from Iwakuni baseThe Typhon system is capable of firing missiles with a range of up to 2,000km, bringing parts of the Taiwan Strait and eastern coastal regions of mainland China within its strike range. Photo: Handout via US Army
Alcott Wei in Beijing
30 Aug 2025
Japan is expected to deploy the US-made Typhon missile system for the first time during joint military exercises with the United States next month, according to Japanese media.Analysts view the move as a strategic signal against Beijing, especially in the event of a conflict over Taiwan.The Chinese foreign ministry criticised the move on Friday, saying Beijing firmly opposed “the US deployment of the Typhon intermediate-range missile system in Asian countries”.“The deployment of the system in Japan will further undermine the legitimate security interests of other countries. The US and Japan must not introduce the Typhon missile system,” it said.Kyodo News reported on Wednesday that the Japan Ground Self-Defence Force and US Marine Corps would conduct a large-scale field training exercise with China as its notional enemy in September. The Typhon system would be deployed at the US’ Iwakuni base in Yamaguchi prefecture during the drills, it said, citing multiple Japanese and American sources.The system is scheduled to be withdrawn from the base at the end of the exercise, the report said.The missile system is capable of firing Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles and SM-6 surface-to-air missiles, with a range of up to 2,000km (1,240 miles). This would bring parts of the Taiwan Strait and eastern coastal regions of mainland China within its strike range.Beijing’s defence ministry responded to the news on Thursday. “In recent years, Japan has continuously breached the constraints of its pacifist constitution and its commitment to exclusively defensive defence … This has led to growing concerns that it may return to the evil path of militarism,” it said.Analysts say the military exercise underscores the growing US-Japan cooperation in their Asia-Pacific strategy, which will increase Beijing’s security risks, particularly around the Taiwan issue.Zhu Feng, dean of the school of international studies at Nanjing University, compared the actions of the US and Japan to the confrontational missile deployments by the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War.In the Cold War era, the US and the Soviet Union deployed medium-range and strategic missiles near each other’s spheres of influence as deterrents, primarily in Europe and surrounding areas. A famous example is the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, when the Soviet Union secretly deployed nuclear missiles in Cuba to counter US missile bases in Turkey and Italy.In 1987, the Cold War rivals signed the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which prohibited either side from developing, deploying or testing ground-launched missiles with ranges between 500km and 5,500km.However, the treaty collapsed in 2019, after then-US president Donald Trump, dissatisfied that China was not bound by similar restrictions, withdrew from it. The US carried out its first deployment of such missiles in the Philippines last year.Zhu said the United States, by “deploying this missile system around China, sends a fairly clear signal”.“Tokyo and Washington are converging on the issue of containing China. The two countries are explicitly strengthening both their willingness and capability to prepare for military intervention in the Taiwan Strait.”Timothy Heath, a senior international defence researcher at the US-based Rand Corporation, said the deployment “shows that the US continues to aid its ally Japan in strengthening its defences against potential Chinese attack”.The US deployed the Typhon missile system to the Philippines as part of joint combat exercises in April last year and Manila has since used it for training.That deployment was also criticised by China’s foreign ministry, which called the Typhon system an “offensive weapon”.It said the Philippines’ introduction of a medium-range missile system was intended to create regional confrontation and tension, while urging Manila to withdraw the system as soon as possible and “not go further down the wrong path”.Heath said China might feel some threat from the Typhon missiles.“[The] most vulnerable could be ships operating in disputed waters near the Senkakus [East China Sea islands claimed by Beijing as the Diaoyu Islands] if Japan deploys the missile close to the islands,” he said.“China will probably respond by expanding its air-defence network to include HQ-29 missiles. It may add more [intermediate-range ballistic missiles] as a deterrence as well.”The HQ-29 is believed to be China’s most advanced interceptor missile to date, and there is speculation it will be displayed during the Victory Day parade in Beijing on September 3.The system has not been officially confirmed, but it is believed to be more advanced than known Chinese missile defence systems, including the HQ-19, which is similar to the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system.Analysts believe the HQ-29 is a strategic midcourse interceptor designed to destroy ballistic missiles outside the Earth’s atmosphere.Song Zhongping, a military commentator and former PLA instructor, said the Typhon system deployment “reflects the inertia of US-Japan Indo-Pacific strategic cooperation during the [Joe] Biden era”.“It may increase the likelihood of future military frictions and risks between China and the US, as well as between China and Japan. It remains unclear whether a future Trump administration would continue to push forward this process,” he said.Zhu believed the Victory Day commemoration was a factor.“Next month’s Japan-US military exercises may be in response to China’s September 3 military parade, which Japan has always had strong opinions about,” he said.The parade is one of the events marking the 80th anniversary of the victory in the “Chinese people’s war of resistance against Japanese aggression”. Leaders from 26 countries, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, are expected to attend.China is expected to showcase a range of advanced military equipment during the parade, including military vehicles, fighter jets and nuclear missiles.Tokyo has reportedly asked foreign leaders not to attend the parade in Beijing, warning that the Victory Day events carried anti-Japanese overtones.
According to official Chinese figures, the country suffered up to 35 million civilian and military casualties from the first Japanese invasion in 1931 until the end of the war.