Japan has struggled to export cutting-edge defense equipment. However, past disappointments have been turned on their head after Japan won selection for a lucrative Australian frigate requirement worth up to US$6.5 billion.

Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries won a multi-billion dollar deal to build a fleet of advanced naval frigates for Australia, boosting Tokyo’s ambitions to become a major exporter of military equipment and develop its defense sector.

The Australian Government is accelerating the delivery of a larger and more lethal surface combatant fleet with the selection of the upgraded Japanese Mogami-class frigate as the preferred platform for the Royal Australian Navy’s future fleet of general purpose frigates.