The nation¡¯s largest and most powerful group of scientists has started discussing lifting its decades-old ban on defense-related research as the government seeks more collaboration with civilians in the development of weapons technology.
The move comes as the Defense Ministry, under the ¡°proactive peace¡± policy of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, is pushing for the development of dual-use technology by funding research that can be used for both civilian and military purposes.
It also comes on the heels of a report concluded this month by the national defense committee of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which recommended drastically increasing the ministry¡¯s annual budget for dual-use grants to ?10 billion from the current ?600 million.
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