Japan on Friday expressed concern over China’s growing military reach and reiterated what it said was the need to accelerate the deployment of missile defence to protect against the North Korean nuclear and missile threat.

The cabinet of Shinzo Abe, prime minister, endorsed the 2007 defence white paper, which laid out growing regional tensions. “China is believed to be aiming to build capacity to perform operations in waters further and further from its shores,” the paper said. Beijing was aiming at “air superiority further forward and anti-surface and anti-ship assault capability,” it added.