{"slug": "defense-ministrys-record-y-8-9-trillion-budget-request-expected-to-balloon-by", "title": "Defense Ministry’s record ¥8.9 trillion budget request expected to balloon further by year-end", "summary": "Japan's Defense Ministry submitted a record ¥8.9 trillion ($56 billion) budget request for fiscal 2027, the final year of a five-year, ¥43 trillion defense plan, which includes funding for AI-enabled command and control and other advanced technologies. The figure is expected to grow further as the government revises its national security documents by year-end.", "body_md": "The Defense Ministry is seeking another record-breaking budget — nearly ¥9 trillion ($56 billion) — but that figure is widely expected to balloon even further as Japan revises its three key national security documents by the year-end.\n\nFrom hypersonic underwater-launched missiles to artificial intelligence for command and control, the ministry’s ¥8.9 trillion budget request for fiscal 2027 submitted to the government Monday is chock full of advanced weaponry and tech, but also includes plans for strengthening the ministry’s overseas and domestic outreach and a bigger role for the government in the defense sector.\n\nThe budget request, the final one in a five-year, ¥43 trillion plan, is based on three pillars: preparing for “new ways of warfare” by employing AI and drones, ensuring sustained operational capabilities in a prolonged conflict and strengthening Japan’s defense industrial base.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/defense-ministrys-record-y-8-9-trillion-budget-request-expected-to-balloon-by", "canonical_source": "https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/08/31/japan/politics/japan-defense-budget-request-2026/", "published_at": "2026-08-31 08:33:00+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-08-31 08:51:51.079573+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence"], "entities": ["Defense Ministry", "Japan"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/defense-ministrys-record-y-8-9-trillion-budget-request-expected-to-balloon-by", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/defense-ministrys-record-y-8-9-trillion-budget-request-expected-to-balloon-by.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/defense-ministrys-record-y-8-9-trillion-budget-request-expected-to-balloon-by.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/defense-ministrys-record-y-8-9-trillion-budget-request-expected-to-balloon-by.jsonld"}}