US to deploy missile units to Japan, Philippines in contingency plans for Taiwan emergency

The US is drawing up major contingency plans for military deployments in Japan and the Philippines in case of a looming threat.

The United States will deploy missile units to Japan and the Philippines in case of an emergency over Taiwan, under new contingency plans.

They will be incorporated in a first joint operation plan to be formulated in December, according to sources familiar with Japan-US relations, Kyodo News Agency said on Monday.

A US Marine regiment which possesses the multiple-launch HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) would be deployed along Japan’s Nansei island chain stretching from Kyushu to Yonaguni near Taiwan, Kyodo said.

The US will deploy missile units to Japan and the Philippines in a Taiwan contingency. (stock image) Picture: Greg Johnson / US Navy / AFP

From an early stage, if a Taiwan contingency becomes highly imminent, temporary bases will be set up on inhabited islands based on US military guidelines for dispatching marines in small formations to several locations, the report added.

Japan’s military is expected to mainly engage in logistical support for the marine unit, including supplying fuel and ammunition, it said.

Kyodo added that the US Army would deploy Multi-Domain Task Force long-range fire units in the Philippines.

A three-day maritime exercise between the US and Japan in the Philippine Sea, between Okinawa and Taiwan, on January 31, 2024. (stock image) Picture: Richard A. Brooks / AFP

The Japanese and the Philippines defence ministries were not immediately available for comment.

The US embassy in Manila declined to comment while the Chinese embassy in Manila “noted” the Kyodo report.

China is building up its military capacity while ramping up pressure on self-governed Taiwan, which it claims as part of its territory.

Washington has been strengthening alliances in the region, while infuriating Beijing with regular deployments of ships and fighter jets in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.