Japan and the United States have agreed to deploy Patriot missiles on US bases in Japan for the first time, officials said today.
The agreement earlier this month came amid concerns that North Korea may be about to test-fire a long-range ballistic missile.
The US plans to deploy the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missiles designed to intercept ballistic missiles, cruise missiles or aircraft as soon as possible, a Japanese Defence Agency spokeswoman said.
Japan's largest newspaper Yomiuri Shimbunreported today that the US military would deploy three or four batteries of the surface-to-air missiles on the southern island of Okinawa by the end of the year and send 500 to 600 additional US troops there.
The plan was proposed by US officials during a June 17th meeting in Hawaii, the newspaper said.
Recent intelligence reports indicate North Korea may be preparing to test-fire a Taepodong-2 missile within days and is fuelling the missile at a launch site on the country's northeastern coast.