The government will establish a Ground Self-Defense Force coastal monitoring unit with early warning radar and surface-to-ship missiles in the remote Nansei Islands in line with a new five-year midterm defense buildup plan from fiscal 2011 adopted Friday.
While the plan doesn't specify the number of troops to be based on the Nansei Islands, the GSDF plans to increase their presence, including on Yonaguni Island, by up to 2,000, defense sources said.
The Air Self-Defense Force, meanwhile, will add a second squadron at the ASDF base in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, the sources said.