The U.S. "Typhoon" medium-range missile system conducted live fire firing during the "Talisman Sabre" exercise held in Australia's Northern Territory in July 2025. This was also the first time that the system conducted live fire firing outside the United States.
The United States and Japan will further enhance the actual level of joint military exercises and increase high-intensity live-fire training in the future. The U.S. military's "Typhon" medium-range missile system may also become a training item. Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and U.S. Defense Secretary Hergseth held talks recently and promised to promote more advanced joint training, but the specific weapons to be used are still being coordinated by the two sides.
The Japan Times reported on October 30 that this direction of cooperation between the United States and Japan has been partially demonstrated in the just-concluded "Keen Sword 27" joint exercise. The exercise started on October 19 and ended on the 29th. It covered various parts of Japan and surrounding waters, and extended the training to the space and cyber fields.
The report pointed out that for the first time, the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force moved Type 25 surface-to-ship missiles to a training ground outside the station for simulated shooting training. The missile has a range of about 1,000 kilometers, and the training is believed to involve sharing target information between the United States and Japan.
The U.S. Marine Corps' "Navy/Marine Expeditionary Fleet Denial System" (NMESIS) was also scheduled to be deployed to Japan's Yonaguni Island, which is closest to Taiwan. Yonaguni Island is about 110 kilometers away from Taiwan, and the NMESIS range is about 185 kilometers, which can theoretically cover the waters surrounding Taiwan. However, reports pointed out that the deployment was reportedly canceled due to a typhoon and was not successfully carried out.
The Thaiwind medium-range missile system is another weapon that may be involved in future US-Japan joint training. This shore-based system can launch Tomahawk cruise missiles with a range of up to 1,600 kilometers, which can cover parts of China.
The Taifeng system participated in the "Valiant Shield" exercise with the US military in June this year. In September, it was deployed to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan for the first time to participate in the resource and "Orient Shield" exercises. It is currently stored at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa. However, neither of these two exercises actually used Taifeng to launch missiles.
When Shinjiro Koizumi was asked on October 30 whether Taifeng or Type-25 missiles might be used in future live-fire training, he said that Japan and the United States are still coordinating specific weapons projects. He emphasized that more advanced and practical joint training will be promoted with a higher sense of urgency, including increasing live-fire firing.
The report pointed out that the United States and Japan have continued to increase military activities around the Southwest Islands in recent years, and joint exercises have gradually expanded to the space, network and electromagnetic fields. Hiroshi Uchikura, chief of staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, said that Japan still has room for further improvement in terms of its efficiency in tracking and engaging targets, as well as cooperation in the space, cyber and electromagnetic fields.
