Japan officially eases arms export rules

TOKYO - The Japanese government officially revised "the three principles on transfer of defense equipment and technology" and their implementation guidelines on Tuesday to enable overseas sales of weapons, including those with lethal capabilities.

The changes have been approved by the Cabinet and the National Security Council, Kyodo News reported.

The revisions scrap rules that limit Japan's defense equipment exports to five noncombat categories, namely rescue, transport, warning, surveillance, and minesweeping. Instead, defense equipment will be divided into "weapons" and "non-weapons" categories, based on whether they have lethal capability.

While the revisions in principle prohibit the export of arms to countries where conflict is taking place, they do allow for exceptions "in special circumstances" that take into consideration Japan's security needs.