TOKYO (NHK World) -- Japan and the United States have launched joint exercises including live firings of the Javelin anti-tank missile.

The Javelin is a portable weapon that the U.S. has supplied to Ukraine. About 1,400 personnel from Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force and some 700 from the U.S. Army are taking part in the exercises that began on Sunday at GSDF training fields across the Kyushu region. The exercises are aimed at improving response capability to defend Japan’s remote islands.