JAPAN will not rule out options to make fundamental changes to strengthen its defence capabilities, as the government aims to revise its National Security Strategy.
The possibility of the changes comes as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the Russia – Ukraine conflict threatens to shake the very foundation of international order and could potentially lead the world to "the greatest crisis" since World War II.
According to a Kyodo News report, Japan could make the changes in the security strategy and two other key documents on its defence build-up by the end of the year.
Speaking at a graduation ceremony of the National Defence Academy on Sunday, he also touched on the situation in the Indo-Pacific, saying a unilateral change of the status quo by force must never be allowed, especially in East Asia.
Kishida said the security environment surrounding Japan was becoming markedly more serious, citing attempts by China in recent years to unilaterally change the status quo in the East and South China seas, as well as successive ballistic missile launches by North Korea.
Meanwhile in another development, Kyodo reports that Japanese gas and energy firms were looking at alternative suppliers for natural gas as concerns grow that Russia may reduce or suspend its natural gas supply in retaliation for Western sanctions on the country.
The Hiroshima Gas Co. is now considering purchasing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Malaysia and other producers, while Osaka Gas Co. plans to speed up gas procurement from the United States or Australia.
Concerns have also grown as Russia said it will seek payment in rubles instead of the dollar or euro for gas sales from "unfriendly countries" such as Japan and the United States, which have imposed sanctions on Moscow.
"We are keeping close attention on new developments including the impact of economic sanctions on Russia," said a Hiroshima Gas public relations official.
"We will continue our efforts to maintain a stable supply as we cooperate with other companies in collecting information," the official said.
According to Japan External Trade Organisation data, resource poor Japan imported about 3.6 per cent of its crude oil and 8.8 per cent of LNG supplies from Russia in 2021.
Most of that LNG comes from the Sakhalin 2 large-scale oil and gas project, which is a joint venture involving Japanese companies with an annual output capacity of about 10 million tonnes of LNG.
Hiroshima Gas procures about 200,000 tonnes, or about half of its annual LNG purchases in a contract running through March 2028 from the Sakhalin 2 project.
Japan Gas Association head Takehiro Honjo said the organisation will create a structure that will allow companies to share their supplies in case of a LNG supply crunch.
"It will be a problem that Japan faces as a country, and it cannot be solved unless (each company) comes and works together," he had said earlier this month.
Several other utility firms also purchase their energy supplies from Moscow, with Tokyo Gas Co which supplies the Tokyo metropolitan area, buying about 10 per cent or 1.1 million tonnes of its LNG from Russia.
Energy experts said the Sakhalin 2 project proximity to Japan's northern main island of Hokkaido plays a crucial role in the country's energy supply with a stable supply of LNG through long-term contracts and relatively cheap shipping costs.
Japanese firms - Mitsui & Co. and Mitsubishi Corp. - hold a 12.5 per cent and 10 per cent stake, respectively, in the venture, while Russian energy giant Gazprom PJSC has about a 50 per cent stake.
The other stakeholder is British oil company Shell PLC, which announced its exit on Feb 28 due to the conflict.
Following this, Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Koichi Hagiuda had said both public and private sectors need to cooperate and take every possible measure to prepare for any eventuality over the project.