Tokyo, Aug 31 (IANS): Japan's Defence Ministry announced on Thursday a record-high budget request for fiscal 2018

The ministry's budget request, up by 2.5 per cent from this year's initial budget, totals 5.26 trillion yen ($47 billion) for the fiscal year starting from April 2018, reports Xinhua news agency.

The request was compiled by setting the dollar's exchange rate at 110 yen for fiscal 2018.

Part of the money would be used to introduce a new missile shield system but the amount was unspecified as it still needs to be hammered out with the US, said the ministry.

The ministry also requested 55.2 billion yen for the maintenance of facilities for Self-Defence Forces units stationed in Okinawa and 10 billion yen for developing technologies to create high-speed glide bombs for operations to "retake invaded remote islands".

The ministry is also eyeing allocating 11 billion yen for a research funding programme called National Security Technology Research Promotion, the same amount as fiscal 2017, but surging 37 times compared to the 300 million yen in fiscal 2015 when the programme was set up.

A state budget for fiscal 2018 will be compiled by the end of this year.