Japan Plans More Evacuation Shelters in Okinawa Amid Taiwan Tensions

Members of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) bring down the Japanese national flag in the early evening, at the JGSDF Miyako camp on Miyako Island, Okinawa prefecture, Japan, on April 20, 2022. Issei Kato/Reuters

Japan is planning to build additional evacuation shelters on the Okinawa islands to shield residents from missile threats amid the rising tensions in Taiwan, a government official said on Friday.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said the Cabinet Secretariat sought a budget of 70 million yen ($477,000) for fiscal 2023 to study the specifications for shelters that can house residents during a military contingency.

“We will conduct an extensive analysis looking into various aspects, including specification, technical and cost issues,” Matsuno told reporters, according to Nikkei Asia.   [accessible here]

He said the government aims to build shelters in the Sakishima Islands, including Yonaguni and Ishigaki—which are close to Taiwan—to augment the existing six evacuation shelters in Okinawa prefecture.

The government would also consider building above-ground evacuation shelters in the prefecture, given the lack of underground facilities on the islands, Matsuno added.

Japan designated over 400 subway stations as temporary emergency shelters as of June this year following the Russia-Ukraine war. Emergency shelters allow people to take shelter for only one to two hours in the event of a missile attack.

About 94,125 locations across Japan, including schools and community centers, were given that designation as of April 2021, though only 1,278 of those locations were underground, The Asahi Shimbun reported.

Taiwan Tensions

The expansion plan comes after China launched military drills near Taiwan following a controversial visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in August, firing multiple ballistic missiles over Taiwan and imposing a naval blockade.

Shigeru Ishiba, lawmaker and former Japanese defense minister, met with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on July 28 to discuss “laws and agreements,” as well as the armed forces to be deployed to address the resulting issues.

“We need to work together to reach consensus on this ahead of anything that could happen,” Ishiba said at the Presidential Office in Taipei.

Japan devoted significant space of this year’s annual defense report to Taiwan, stating that Taiwan’s stability is “critical for Japan’s security” and must be “closely monitored with a sense of urgency.”

“China has made clear that it would not hesitate to unify Taiwan by force, further increasing tensions in the region,” Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said in the report released on July 22.

North Korea, which has carried out a series of missile tests this year, also poses a nuclear threat to Japan. North Korea launched a ballistic missile over Japan on Oct. 4, prompting Japan to issue an alert for residents in several regions to take shelter.