The Russian Foreign Ministry said that Japan - after adopting a new defense strategy - is now on the path to an unprecedented mobilization of military force, warning that its return to "unbridled militarism" will inevitably raise new security challenges in the Asia-Pacific region.

It also confirmed that Japan had already started an "unprecedented" build-up of its military power, including the acquisition of huge capabilities.

This comes after Tokyo announced last week a new and unprecedented defense policy since World War II, which includes allocating $320 billion to strengthen its military capabilities and provide missiles capable of hitting China.

The new defense policy document describes neighboring China as an unprecedented strategic challenge, and describes Russia as a source of concern for Japanese national security.

The new amendments include the right of Japanese forces to launch "counter-strikes" against countries they consider hostile, according to three conditions: that the threat is inevitable to Japan or to a friendly country, that there is no other way to avoid strikes, and that the response is as low as possible.

The new strategy also stresses that Japan's current capabilities to drop potential missiles over the country's territory are not effective enough, and that any pre-emptive strike on an enemy country "cannot be allowed" under the constitution.

The amendments also provide for doubling the defense budget over the next five years to constitute 2% of the gross domestic product, thus exceeding the 1% defense spending ceiling adopted by Japan since 1976.

With this new defense strategy, Japan ends decades of adopting a policy of peaceful coexistence and a commitment not to have a military force, a policy adopted by Tokyo because of its past in World War II, and the devastation it caused in the world.