On 28 October 2026, Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi announced that the United States and Japan had agreed to establish a facility in Japan for the final assembly and inspection of AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs). The announcement followed talks with US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus in Cebu, the Philippines.
Missile production cooperation
The facility is part of Operation Supercharge, a joint initiative to accelerate cooperation on defence equipment and technology. The agreement aims to secure supplies for both countries, strengthen Japan’s defence industrial base and meet rising demand amid depleted US missile stocks. AMRAAMs are considered essential to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighters operated by both countries. The two sides also agreed to share technical information to increase production of SM-3 Block IIA interceptor missiles, a joint programme. As of 29 October, the facility’s location, construction timeline, production capacity and Japanese industrial partner had not been disclosed.
Wider security cooperation
The defence chiefs also committed to stronger cooperation against cyberattacks and faster planning for more advanced, realistic joint military exercises. They linked their cooperation to strengthening deterrence and establishing a denial defence along the First Island Chain.
Important Facts for Exams
- Radar guidance: AMRAAM uses active transmit-and-receive radar guidance, unlike semi-active guidance, which is receive-only.
- Inertial navigation: At long range, AMRAAM uses inertial navigation to fly an interception course using target information supplied before launch.
- Fire-and-forget operation: Once its active radar guides it to the target, AMRAAM can operate fire-and-forget, freeing aircrew to engage multiple targets simultaneously.
- Response to jamming: AMRAAM can respond to jamming by switching from active radar homing to passive homing on signals emitted by the target aircraft.
