Howa Type 89

The Howa Type 89 assault rifle (89式小銃, hachi-kyū-shiki-shōjū), referred to as the Type 89 5.56 mm rifle (89式5.56mm小銃, hachi-kyū-shiki-go-ten-go-roku-miri-shōjū), is a Japanese assault rifle used by the Japan Self-Defense Forces, the Japan Coast Guard's Special Security Team units, and the Special Assault Team. It has never been exported outside Japan due to its strict Japanese arms-export ban. It is known in JGSDF service as the Hachikyū (a Japanese reading of the number 89) or by its nickname Buddy. The Type 89 was introduced to replace the Howa Type 64 battle rifle in frontline units, entering service in 1989. It has remained Japan's principal service rifle since then. Small numbers of the Type 89's successor, the Howa Type 20, were purchased in 2020. The Type 20 is intended to supplement and eventually replace the Type 89.