Australia has just signed a contract to buy 11 Mogami-class stealth guards from Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Group, with a total value of about 6 billion USD (10 billion AUD) over the next 10 years.
This is considered Japan's largest defense export deal since World War II, and the largest defense deal ever between the two countries.
Secretary of Defense Richard Marles said the decision was based on the criteria for selecting optimal capacity for Australia. He affirmed that the Mogami-class guided-move ships are a generation of advanced, invisibly capable warships, equipped with 32 vertical launch tubes to launch long-range missiles, gradually replacing old Anzac-class ships. The first one is expected to be operational in 2030.
The first three ships will be built overseas, while the rest are expected to be built at shipyards in Western Australia, helping to boost the domestic defense industry.
According to Defense Industry Minister Pat Conroy, these ships are capable of launching Tomahawk cruise missiles, significantly enhancing the strength and deterrence of the Australian Navy.
Japanese government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi stressed that the contract reflects Japan's confidence in advanced defense technology, while strengthening the capability of combat coordination between the Japanese defence force and the Australian military.
The deal also marks an important step forward in bilateral security relations, which has been strongly promoted through the "Quaternity" group including Japan, Australia, the US and India.
The deal comes as Australia restructures its military, expanding its warships from 11 to 26 in the next decade to increase deterrence in the Indo-Pacific region.
In addition, the country continues to implement plans to purchase Virginia-class nuclear warheads from the US under the AUKUS agreement, a project with an estimated cost of up to 235 billion USD over 30 years.
The increase in naval strength shows that Australia is determined to pursue a long-distance marine defense strategy, while Japan is also loosening arms export restrictions to expand defense cooperation with strategic allies.
