Japan races to build up its navy

Japan is planning to speed up its warship building program that will make two frigates a year to patrol the perimeters of the East China Sea north of Taiwan, an area that both Japan and China claim island ownership, reports Reuters.

Japan — which was originally building one 5k-ton class destroyer a year — will now make two 3k-ton class ships a year starting in April 2018. The country is also planning to produce a fleet of eight smaller, cheaper vessels, which may have mine-sweeping and anti-submarine capabilities.

Note: This is not the same thing as the South China Sea dispute.