Japan reveals plans to build shelters on islands near Taiwan.

According to a Nikkei Asia report on March 30, the guidelines state that the Japanese central government will fund the design and construction of emergency evacuation facilities on the Sakishima Islands in Okinawa Prefecture. The islands are Japan's southernmost point and are not far from Taiwan.

Construction is planned to take place in communities only accessible by air or sea. They will have to draft and publicize evacuation plans for all residents, and conduct joint drills with central and provincial authorities.

The central government has identified five communities in Sakishima that meet the requirements for shelter construction and will soon begin negotiations.

Nhật Bản hé lộ kế hoạch xây nơi trú ẩn trên các đảo gần Đài Loan- Ảnh 1. — Yonaguni Island is part of the Sakishima Islands.

The Cabinet Office will assist with the design, while the Japanese Ministry of Defense will provide funding for construction in the cities of Ishigaki and Miyakojima, as well as the town of Yonaguni, all of which are home to bases of the Japan Self-Defense Forces (SDF).

The Japan Fire and Disaster Management Agency will fund the construction of shelters in Taketomi town and Tarama village, areas without any SDF bases.

These facilities will be built beneath new public buildings and are designed to house evacuees for about two weeks, according to guidelines revealed on March 29.

These locations will have electricity and communication equipment, as well as providing 3 liters of water per day and other supplies for each person. Each evacuee will have approximately 2 ^square meters of space in these locations. The exterior walls will be made of reinforced concrete more than 30 cm thick.

If a crisis erupts, the Japanese government plans to evacuate all residents on the islands in a large area before facing any military attack. However, this would take a long time on the remote islands.

Therefore, the shelters will be used by government personnel overseeing the evacuation as well as evacuees waiting to leave the island. In peacetime, these facilities will serve as meeting places and parking lots.

The shelters are designed to protect citizens from coordinated attacks. Some members of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party have called for the construction of structures that can withstand nuclear and electromagnetic pulse attacks.

Okinawa lacks a subway system and has few underground structures. As of April 1, 2023, the prefecture had only eight designated underground emergency shelters. The Sakishima Islands government has requested assistance from the central government for additional shelters.

"It is necessary to clearly communicate to the public that the lives of the residents of Sakishima Island are very likely to be threatened by an unexpected situation in Taiwan or by a missile launch by [DPRK] North Korea," Nikkei Asia quoted Professor Mitsuru Fukuda of Nihon University in Tokyo as saying.

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