Japanese universities and other educational institutions more than doubled their applications for defence ministry research funding this year to a record 291, up from 123 last year, as Tokyo moves to strengthen its defence capabilities.
The increase is the clearest sign yet that academia’s decades-long resistance to military-linked work is diminishing.
The bids accounted for more than half the record 560 applications received by the ministry this year, up from 340 last year, with the rest coming from public research institutes and companies.
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Of the 47 projects selected for funding under the 12.9 billion yen (US$82 million) programme, 30 will be led by university researchers, with 11 universities – including Osaka, Nagoya and Keio – winning grants for the first time.