Japan’s China-facing military build-up confronts labour, budget and political limits

The risk of a conflict over Taiwan is shaping Japanese defence planning, with Tokyo shoring up security at home and abroad for a potentially prolonged fight. But there are economic, demographic and political constraints on how far its military transformation can go. In the third of a three-part series, Gabriel Dominguez examines the various challenges confronting Japan in its bid to expand its military.

Driven by the growing risk that a conflict over Taiwan could draw Tokyo into a high-intensity confrontation with Beijing, Japan is pursuing its most ambitious military transformation since World War II.

Tokyo is acquiring long-range missiles, embracing drones and expanding defence partnerships stretching from Canberra to London.

Yet, analysts say some of the toughest obstacles to the transformation may lie at home.

As Tokyo prepares to revise its strategic security documents by year’s end, its historic military build-up must contend with growing constraints.

These include a shrinking pool of military recruits, an ageing population, mounting fiscal pressures, an industrial base struggling to expand and lingering questions over how far the Japanese public would support the use of its ascendant military power.