Japan Builds Airbase On Uninhabited Island Preemptively Against CCP

According to reports on January 17, Japan decided to build a military base on Mageshima Island to strengthen Japan’s defenses in the nearby Ryukyu Islands and provide a backup air base, in the event of an attack on Okinawa. Mageshima Island is an uninhabited island of 8 square kilometers located in the northeast of the Ryukyu Islands and 12 kilometers away from the inhabited Tanegashima Island. Communist China’s naval vessels must pass by the Ryukyu Islands to access the Pacific Ocean. In 2011, Mageshima Island became a candidate site for the relocation of the U.S. military’s field carrier landing practices. According to some military theories, small islands are of strategic importance and can often serve as logistics assembly points, protective barriers, forward combat bases and geographical locations for the expansion of ocean cables. Therefore, they are very attractive to major countries. Mageshima is no exception. The flat terrain of Mageshima will make it easier to build the airport, and since it is uninhabited, there is no concern over aircraft noise and safety. Some analysts pointed out that the number of Japanese Self-Defense Force bases in the South West Islands is limited, and the construction of Mageshima Island will enable Japan and the United States to carry out deep defense against the Chinese Communist Party. At the same time, Japan’s island base should be built not only to prevent the CCP from occupying the Senkaku Islands but also to defeat Communist China’s greater maritime ambitions. It is also reported that Japan has planned to establish long-range cruise missile bases on its southwestern islands and Kyushu Island to improve its ability to launch counterattacks on Communist China. Therefore, Japan may also choose to establish a long-range missile base on Mageshima Island.