Japan OKs new budget incl. hefty arms cost to deter China


              Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, foreground left, bows after Japan’s lower house of Parliament approved a 114 trillion yen ($836 billion) budget for the coming fiscal year in Tokyo Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023. (Kyodo News via AP)
            
              Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a lower house budget committee meeting in Tokyo Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023. Japan’s lower house of Parliament approved Tuesday a 114 trillion yen ($836 billion) budget for the coming fiscal year that includes a record 6.8 trillion yen ($50 billion) in defense spending, as part of a military buildup as China’s influence in the region grows. (Kyodo News via AP)
            
              Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a lower house budget committee meeting in Tokyo Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023. Japan’s lower house of Parliament approved Tuesday a 114 trillion yen ($836 billion) budget for the coming fiscal year that includes a record 6.8 trillion yen ($50 billion) in defense spending, as part of a military buildup as China’s influence in the region grows. (Kyodo News via AP)
            
              FILE - In this file image from video provided by the U.S. Navy, the guided-missile destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) launches a tomahawk land attack missile in the Mediterranean Sea, on April 7, 2017. Japan's 2023 defense budget, up 20% from a year earlier, includes 211.3 billion yen ($1.55 billion) for deployment in 2026 of U.S.-made, long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles that can be launched from warships and hit targets up to 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) away.  (Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Ford Williams/U.S. Navy via AP, File)