A Japanese daily reports the Japanese government will boost the legal authority of its Coast Guard in order to better defend the nation's territorial waters.

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun said Thursday that the Japanese government plans to strengthen the policing power of its coastguards and allow them to order suspicious ships to leave Japanese waters without conducting inspections.

The Japanese government will also ease rules on the use of weapons by its Coast Guard, meaning coastguards will be able to judge when to use their weapons if suspicious ships threaten their safety.

The Japanese government will submit a revision of a related law to the plenary session of the National Diet late this month. The Japan Coast Guard’s internal rules will also be revised.