
Japan decided to suspend the deployment of the two Aegis Ashore missile defense systems due the technical and cost issues, Defense Minister Taro Kono said Monday. “In view of the cost and [more] time [needed] for the deployment, we will halt the process,” local Kyodo News reported Kono told reporters. Aegis Ashore is a land-based variant of the U.S. Navy’s Aegis Weapons System that targets medium and intermediate-range ballistic missiles. Japan currently fields several ships with the Aegis system. Kono underscored…