The Diplomat
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On the deck of JS Izumo at port in Yokosuka, Japan.
On the deck of JS Izumo at port in Yokosuka, Japan.
Catherine Putz, The Diplomat
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Here Come Japan’s Aircraft Carriers

The modification of the Izumos will upend nearly seven decades of defense thinking in Japan, and across East Asia.

By Robert Farley

In a few short years, Japan will have its first real aircraft carriers since World War II. The modification of JS Izumo and JS Kaga to carry the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter will upend, or at least update, nearly seven decades of defense thinking in Japan, and across East Asia. The combination of the Izumos with the F-35B Lightning II stealth fighter and the MV-22 Osprey transport may herald Japan’s return to serious naval competition in East Asia, with reverberations in South Korea, China, and the United States. It may also fundamentally change the identity and culture of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) and the rest of the Japanese armed forces.

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The Authors

Robert Farley is a senior lecturer at the University of Kentucky’s Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce and a visiting professor at the U.S. Army War College.

The views expressed here are his personal views and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Defense, the U.S. Army, the Army War College, or any other department or agency of the U.S. government.

Catherine Putz, managing editor of The Diplomat, contributed reporting to this piece from Japan, supported by the Sasakawa USA-International Center for Journalists Emerging Experts Delegation (SEED) program.

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