A panel of experts is likely to issue recommendations this month for a policy review expected to be finished by year-end, with media reports saying it will urge Japan to beef up its ability to respond to multiple attacks and also review a defense posture that relies heavily on the US nuclear deterrent.

"The role of the Self-Defense Forces is becoming increasingly important for the peace of Japan," said Kan - who took over in June as Japan's fifth prime minister in three years.

"I want you to give me your candid views."

Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa told reporters after the meeting that Kan and the four chiefs of staff discussed issues including North Korea and China, but he did not elaborate.

Article 9 of Japan's 1947 Constitution, drafted by US Occupation forces after Tokyo's defeat in World War Two, renounces the right to wage war to resolve international disputes and bans the maintenance of a military.

The article, however, has been stretched to not only permit the maintenance of armed forces bigger than Britain's, but to also allow overseas military activities - including the deployment in 2004 of troops on a non-combat mission to Iraq.

Media reports have said that the advisory panel will also call on the government to consider lifting a ban on aiding allies under attack, discuss easing a ban on arms exports, and review a policy that bars nuclear weapons from the country.

A panel last year said that Japan should ease restraints on its military, but that advice was set aside after the Democrats took power for the first time last August.

Some analysts say the reality of regional threats could force the Democrats to tread a similar path to their conservative predecessors.

China, on track to overtake Japan this year as the world's No.2 economy, has invested heavily in modernizing its military and turning its navy into a blue-water fleet that can project power far from its shores.

The Democrats, however, pledged on taking power to seek more equal ties with security ally Washington while also improving relations with Asian neighbors, who could be upset by any sign that Tokyo is flexing its military muscle.

"We might see the language (of the recommendations) toned down slightly from last year," said Phil Deans, a professor of international affairs at Temple University's Japan Campus.

"I'd be very surprised if it got toned up."