The government is scrapping its plans to research technologies for long-range, precision-guided missiles, due to opposition from within the ruling coalition.

New Komeito, junior partner in the alliance with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, was incensed that the missile-research project was floated so hastily, according to party officials.

Since such missiles would allow Japan to attack enemy bases, they could run counter to the nation's ``exclusively defensive'' defense policy, critics said.

The Defense Agency told a New Komeito policy board meeting Tuesday it will exclude the missile research from the midterm defense buildup program covering fiscal 2005 to 2009.

The new program will be subject to Cabinet approval Friday.

In the program's draft outline released earlier this month, the missile research was included along with the development of an airborne electronics-jamming system to incapacitate enemy air-defense radars.

The latter will be approved as proposed.

Earlier Tuesday, defense and administration officials sought New Komeito's approval of the missile research at a coalition security project team meeting.

Officials said the high precision, surface-to-surface missiles would have a range of up to 300 kilometers. They said they would be specifically aimed to defend Japan's distant islands from enemy invasion-a reason widely criticized as not persuasive.

``We are not planning them for attacking other countries,'' an official said.

Some LDP members backed the research plan as long as it was one with restraint in view of Japan's exclusive defense posture. But New Komeito members were strongly opposed, citing the lack of public debate.

Critics have also said the missile research would inevitably raise suspicions about Japan's intentions among its neighbors.(IHT/Asahi: December 9,2004)