Colonel Patrick M. O'Donogue (U.S. Army War College class of 2000) considers a topic of key importance to U.S. national security. Perhaps no security matter (with the exception of National Missile Defense) is as contentious globally as Theater Missile Defense (TMD). The question of U.S. assistance to Japan to develop and deploy a TMD is particularly complex and controversial.

Colonel Patrick M. O'Donogue (U.S. Army War College class of 2000) considers a topic of key importance to U.S. national security. Perhaps no security matter (with the exception of National Missile Defense) is as contentious globally as Theater Missile Defense (TMD). The question of U.S. assistance to Japan to develop and deploy a TMD is particularly complex and controversial.

As East Asia is entering the 21st Century, Japan, in reassessing its security environment and thus its strategic calculus, is on the verge of deploying latest jointly-researched theater missile defenses (TMD) to counter the threat of ballistic and cruise missiles. In parallel, the People's Republic of China is constantly modernizing its ballistic missile forces and is gearing up for a possible contingency with its self-proclaimed "high-tech adversaries". This work shows what drives Japan to deploy theater missile defenses and how the People's Republic of China is poised to be reacting to it.