Russia, China blast deployment of US ‘Typhon’ missiles to Japan

Russia and China have both warned Japan about the United States’ decision to allow it to launch “Typhon” intermediate-range missiles during joint military exercises in Japan starting next month, citing this as a threat to regional stability.

According to Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “We view this as yet another destabilizing step as part of Washington’s strategy to increase the potential of ground-based shorter and intermediate-range missiles.”

In comments made by the nation’s state-run TASS news agency, Zakharova claimed that using Typhon missiles “in regions close to Russia poses a direct strategic threat to Russia.”

According to the spokeswoman, Moscow has also taken note of Japan’s “accelerated militarisation” and US cooperation.

Russia “will have to take appropriate military-technical measures” if Japan does not reconsider its decision regarding the Typhon’s deployment, she said.

“We will assume that the Japanese side bears all of the blame for the further degradation of the regional situation,” she continued.

Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated on Friday that the US and Japan should support regional harmony and stability without compromising it with the deployment of medium-range missiles, even if only for a short while.

According to Guo, the state-run Xinhua news agency, “China always opposes the United States deploying the Typhon Mid-Range Capability missile system in Asian nations.”

We urge Japan to examine its history of hostility, choose a peaceful development, act prudently in military and security areas, and refrain from further losing its Asian neighbors and the international community’s confidence, he said.

Guo claimed that China also urged Washington to “draw lessons from history and devote more time and resources to doing the right thing rather than the opposite.”

According to a report from Reuters news agency, Washington is attempting to amass a variety of antiship weapons in Asia with the Typhon system.

When China first used the missiles in the Philippines during a training exercise in 2024, that move already sparked a later rebuke.

Manila has since announced plans to purchase the US missile system’s land-based launch pad, which has a range of 480 kilometers (300 miles), though an extended-range variant is still being developed.

The Typhon would be stationed at the US Marine Air Station on Honshu island, which is located 890 kilometers (553 miles) west of Tokyo, according to a spokesperson for Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force.