{"id":15542,"date":"2025-08-07T12:01:24","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T11:01:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=15542"},"modified":"2025-08-07T12:01:49","modified_gmt":"2025-08-07T11:01:49","slug":"japan-strengthens-defense-with-f-35b-stealth-fighters-amid-regional-tensions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/analysis\/defense\/japan-strengthens-defense-with-f-35b-stealth-fighters-amid-regional-tensions\/2025\/08\/07\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Japan strengthens defense with F-35B Stealth Fighters amid regional tensions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p dir=\"ltr\" data-pm-slice=\"1 1 []\">TOKYO, August 7(<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arabnews.jp\/en\/japan\/article_152929\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">AP<\/a>) \u2013 Japan bolstered its defense capabilities with the arrival of its first three F-35B stealth fighter jets at Nyutabaru Air Base in Miyazaki Prefecture on Thursday, a strategic move amid rising regional tensions, particularly with China. The advanced jets, designed for short take-off and vertical landing, are part of Japan\u2019s broader effort to strengthen its military presence in the southwest, including on remote islands. A fourth F-35B is expected to join the fleet at Nyutabaru later, with four additional jets slated for delivery by March 2026, according to the Air Self-Defense Force.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The F-35Bs will operate from Japan\u2019s modified helicopter carriers, <em>Izumo<\/em> and <em>Kaga<\/em>, enhancing the nation\u2019s ability to project power and respond to regional threats. Japan is also constructing a new air base on Mageshima Island, 160 kilometers south of Nyutabaru, to support F-35B flight exercises. However, delays in the project mean training will remain at Nyutabaru until around 2030, prompting protests from local residents over concerns about aircraft noise.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Japan\u2019s acquisition of 42 F-35Bs and 105 conventional take-off and landing F-35As positions it as the largest F-35 operator outside the United States. The deployment reflects Japan\u2019s accelerated military buildup, driven by concerns over China\u2019s growing influence and regional security dynamics.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>TOKYO, August 7(AP) \u2013 Japan bolstered its defense capabilities with the arrival of its first three F-35B stealth fighter jets at Nyutabaru Air Base in Miyazaki Prefecture on Thursday, a strategic move amid rising regional tensions, particularly with China. The advanced jets, designed for short take-off and vertical landing, are part of Japan\u2019s broader effort [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":15545,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[26,2428],"tags":[152,936,1458,1869,9786],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/f35.jpg","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15542"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15542"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15542\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15547,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15542\/revisions\/15547"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15545"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15542"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15542"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15542"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}