At the same time, the service officially redesignated the systems as the \u201cType 25 Surface-to-Ship Guided Missile (25SSM)\u201d and the \u201cType 25 Hyper Velocity Gliding Projectile (25HGP),\u201d marking their formal entry into service as Japan\u2019s first domestically developed stand-off missiles. The \u201c25\u201d reflects fiscal year 2025\u2014ending March 31\u2014when the systems were formally named and deployed, in line with Japan\u2019s defense equipment naming convention.<\/p>\n
In an official statement, the JGSDF said the move comes \u201cin response to the increasingly severe security environment surrounding Japan,\u201d underscoring the growing importance of stand-off capabilities for deterrence.<\/p>\n The Type 25 SSM is a significantly enhanced version of the legacy Type 12 missile, with its range extended to about 1,000 kilometers. This allows ground-based units to engage targets far beyond Japan\u2019s coastline, including potential naval and land-based assets across East Asia. While originally designed for coastal defense, it is also expected to strike land-based targets such as missile launch sites.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the Type 25 HGP introduces a new class of hypersonic weapon into JGSDF service. Designed for remote island defense, it travels at extremely high speeds along unpredictable trajectories, making interception more difficult. The initial variant deployed at Camp Fuji has a range of several hundred kilometers and will be used primarily for training and doctrine development, with longer-range versions under development.<\/p>\n Together, the newly designated Type 25 systems form a central pillar of Japan\u2019s broader effort to build a layered stand-off defense architecture. The Ministry of Defense plans to deploy the Type 25 HGP to Camp Kamifurano in Hokkaido and Camp Ebino in Miyazaki in fiscal year 2026, and to introduce ship- and air-launched variants of the Type 25 SSM on Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyers and Japan Air Self-Defense Force fighter aircraft in fiscal year 2027.<\/p>\n For decades, Japan relied heavily on missile defense systems such as Patriot PAC-3, with offensive strike roles largely left to U.S. forces. However, the rapid expansion of missile arsenals by China and North Korea has exposed the limits of a purely defensive approach.<\/p>\n The introduction\u2014and formal naming\u2014of the Type 25 systems signals a clear doctrinal shift toward the ability to hold adversary launch sites at risk from stand-off distances.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fie.undef.edu.ar\/ceptm\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Type-25-Surface-to-Ship-Guided-Missile.jpg.jpg\")