Japan's ruling party pledged Thursday ahead of a House of Councillors election to "fundamentally" reinforce the country's defense capability and increase relevant spending in the next five years, as Russia's war against Ukraine has raised calls for a more robust posture.The Liberal Democratic Party has in mind a target of roughly doubling the country's defense spending to 2 percent or more of gross domestic product, in line with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.The goal is included in a package of pledges announced Thursday for the July 10 upper house election. Prime Minister Fumio Ki…READ FULL ARTICLE
