Japan says NKorea, China security concerns

Tokyo, July 6: Japan kept up the pressure on North Korea over its nuclear weapons and missiles and expressed concern about the lack of transparency on China's burgeoning military spending in a government defence paper published.

North Korea has tested at least three short-range missiles over the past month, in what a US expert has said were successful launches of an advanced weapon, adding to regional fears after it tested its first nuclear weapon last year.

''In particular, North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile problems are becoming even more serious,'' the Defence Ministry said in its first annual paper since being upgraded from an agency in January.

Pyongyang's launch of a ballistic missile that flew over Japan in 1998 pushed Tokyo into devoting a growing chunk of its annual defence budget to ballistic missile defence -- 160 billion yen (1.3 billion dollar) in the current financial year.

Japan's first ship equipped with ballistic missile interceptors is set to come into service in December, following on from the deployment of ground-based interceptors near Tokyo in March.

China Concerns

China also came in for criticism, an indication that tensions remain despite Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's efforts to restore rocky ties.

''There are fears about the lack of transparency concerning China's military strength,'' the paper said, echoing similar sentiments expressed by its close regional security partner, Australia, in a paper published the previous day.

''In January this year China used ballistic missile technology to destroy one of its own satellites. There was insufficient explanation from China, sparking concern in Japan and other countries about safety in space as well as the security aspects,'' the paper said.

Abe visited China weeks after he came to office in September, and in a sign of improving relations China's defence minister is set to visit Japan this year, the first such trip in almost a decade.

Reuters>