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US triples estimate of Japan's share of missile-plan costs

The US has told Japan it would cost nearly three times more than previously estimated to develop a joint missile defense system against a possible attack by North Korea, a report said yesterday.

The Japanese government may try to renegotiate its contribution to the next-generation project, now estimated to cost a total of US$3 billion, the Yomiuri Shimbun said.

Japan's defense spending has been curtailed for three straight years up to March next year as Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi advocated an austere budget.

Washington's initial estimate saw the US shouldering US$545 million until the fiscal year to March 2012 with work on the project starting in fiscal 2006, the Yomiuri said.

But the amount nearly tripled after Washington extended the period for development to 2014 and recalculated the amount based on previous weaponry projects, the mass-circulation daily said.

The paper said some members of the Japanese government have voiced concern over the latest estimate.

Japan expects the cost of maintaining the current missile defense system, which is scheduled to begin deployment in late fiscal 2006, to total ?800 billion to ?1 trillion (US$7.2 billion to US$8.9 billion), it said.

The paper quoted an anonymous defense agency official as indicating the US financial contribution should be examined carefully.

"It's possible that the US estimate includes experiments that are much larger in terms of scale than Japan needs," the official was quoted as saying.
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