The Navy is developing a new long-range anti-ship missile — dubbed the Maritime Strike Tomahawk — that would allow Marine units based on Japanese islands to sink Chinese ships taking part in an invasion of Taiwan.

Right now, the Marine Corps’ Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System, or NMESIS, uses Naval Strike Missiles, which have a range of up to 115 miles.

A recent war game conducted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank showed that for NMESIS to be effective during a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, the system would have to be on the island before hostiles commence, said retired Marine Col. Mark Cancian, a senior adviser with the CSIS Internati …