A ruling Liberal Democratic Party security policy panel urged the government Wednesday to let Japan directly strike North Korean missile bases in the event Pyongyang stages a ballistic missile attack on the country.
Specifically, the panel urged the government to procure long-range cruise missiles capable of striking North Korean sites.
Panel members emphasized that Japan should only use such long-range missiles after the North fires a ballistic missile against Japan, given the war-renouncing Constitution that limits the use of force by Tokyo strictly to self-defense.