Government wants to send GSDF to Afghanistan

Japan Press Weekly

Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

Government wants to send GSDF to Afghanistan

The government is laying the groundwork for sending a team to Afghanistan by mid-June to see if it is feasible to send Ground Self-Defense Force units to the country.

Government officials revealed that the study team will consist of officials from the Foreign and Defense ministries.

If GSDF troops are to be deployed to Afghanistan, a new law must be enacted to provide the legal ground for sending them to Afghanistan.

At a seminar in late April in Tokyo, Chief Cabinet Secretary Machimura Nobutaka said, “We will consider what Japan can do (in Afghanistan) in addition to continuing refueling activities (by the Maritime SDF in the Indian Ocean to support the “war on terrorism”).”

Prime Minister Fukuda Yasuo on June 1 also said, “I keep thinking about the possibility” of cooperating on the ground.

Democratic Party President Ozawa Ichiro is also in favor of the GSDF participation in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).

Furthermore, the government is considering dispatching its troops to Sudan.

At an event held on June 5 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the U.N. Peacekeeping Operations, Foreign Minister Komura Masahiko said, “We will consider what contribution Japan can make in all regions, including Sudan and Afghanistan.”

Komura said that Japan “has step by step moved forward” by taking part in the PKO in Cambodia and East Timor and sending its troops to the Indian Ocean, insisting that further contribution is “essential.”

He also showed his intention to increase overseas deployment by such means as actively participating in the PKOs available under the current system.

- Akahata, June 6, 2008