Donald Trump announced on Monday that Japan plans to buy 105 US-made stealth warplanes; this would make it home to the largest F35 fleet of any US ally.
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"The United States supports Japan's efforts to improve its defence capabilities, and in recent months we have sent them a large amount of military equipment," Trump said at a press conference, announcing Japan's intention to buy 105 new F-35 warplanes.
The Japanese government first placed an order for 42 F-35As in December 2011. Still, by the time December 2018 rolled around, the existing order was updated. At the time it was reported that Tokyo would be adding 63 F-35As and 42 F-35B variants to its order, in addition to the already placed request for 42 F-35As.
The US F-35 programme has been widely criticised for being wildly over budget and years behind schedule. The programme in 2018 reported that costs for the planes' software update alone would carry a price tag of at least $10 billion, not including development costs.
Japan and the United States have a long history of collaboration. In particular, the nations cooperate in the military sphere, with about 50,000 US military personnel stationed across the island nation.
