Can be used as an office or wine cellar? The government is promoting the use of “nuclear shelters” and their capabilities and prices

Nuclear shelters are attracting attention due to heightened awareness of crises such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, North Korea’s missile threat, and the Taiwan contingency. The government clearly stated its policy on shelter development in three security-related documents approved by the Cabinet last December. The Ministry of Defense is reportedly moving toward a policy of designing Self-Defense Forces facilities to be used as underground shelters for local residents in its maintenance plan for the next five years.

Currently, the nuclear shelter penetration rate in Japan is only 0.02%. This is far behind Israel and Switzerland, where the installation of shelters is required by law and the penetration rate is 100%, as well as the United States, Russia, and the United Kingdom, where the penetration rate was between 82% and 67% according to 2002 data. Nuclear shelters installed in Seoul, South Korea, and Taiwan are said to have a capacity of more than three times the population. While countries around the world are promoting the installation of nuclear shelters on a national scale, in Japan, only a few rich people are secretly installing them. Furthermore, Japan does not have its own standard for building nuclear shelters. Many of the “nuclear shelters” on the market today do not meet Western standards.

Even in Japan, the number of people interested in nuclear shelters is increasing. Kazumi Yoshiyama, president of Anchor Housing Corporation, headquartered in Kawasaki, says , “The day after the invasion of Ukraine last February, we had a lot of inquiries. Inquiries are still increasing, not only from Japan but also from India, Malaysia, and other countries.

Although many people have heard of “nuclear shelters,” few actually know what they are. Mr. Yoshiyama immediately showed us the inside of the shelter. The company used to import them from the U.S., but began producing them domestically last year.

We make products that meet the standards used at U.S. military bases,” he said. Imported ones cost a fortune to transport, and sometimes the welding is incomplete and there are gaps. They think it doesn’t matter because the other side will fill in the gaps anyway.