Japan is considering building an evacuation shelter for residents on a remote island in Okinawa to be used in the event of a military contingency near the Nansei Islands chain or Taiwan, government sources said Thursday.
The need for such a facility comes as the Self-Defense Forces have been expanding the scale of deployment on the southern island prefecture's remote islands, with Yonaguni just about 110 kilometers away from Taiwan, amid China's military buildup.
The government has deemed it necessary to provide the shelter, given that there are no such facilities on the islands, according to the sources.