Army Recognition – Japan plans to begin developing an underwater-launched hypersonic missile under its fiscal 2027 defense program, according to reports published by Kyodo News and TASS on August 19, 2026, potentially giving Tokyo a more survivable and harder-to-detect long-range strike option. Combining hypersonic weapons with submerged launch platforms could significantly strengthen Japan’s counterstrike posture by allowing conventional strike assets to remain concealed, reposition across wide operating areas, and reduce an adversary’s ability to locate and continuously track them before launch.

(Thanks to Alain)