ShotOver
12-09-2003, 03:32 AM
AP - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's Cabinet approved a plan to send soldiers to help rebuild Iraq in the biggest deployment of Japanese troops overseas since World War II.
Following the Cabinet meeting, Koizumi was to go before the nation to explain why he was pushing ahead with the controversial plan, which opposition leaders say could draw troops into fighting and violate Japan's post-war pacifist constitution.
Agriculture Minister Yoshiyuki Kamei confirmed Cabinet had approved the dispatch of troops to southeastern Iraq to restore water services, offer medical and other humanitarian assistance, and help rebuild schools and other infrastructure.
The dispatch, expected to begin over the next month, will involve elements of Japan's land, sea and air forces.
According to media reports, 600 ground troops will be sent, along with armoured vehicles and up to six naval ships, including destroyers.
Eight aircraft, including three C130 transport planes, will also be deployed.
The total number of troops would be about 1,000.
Facing intense political pressures and a sceptical public, Koizumi has refrained from setting a date or announcing other details.
But he has repeatedly vowed to dispatch the troops as soon as the situation in the region is secure enough.
The troops will stay for six months to one year, and, as defensive measures, carry rocket-propelled grenade launchers and other arms that Japanese peacekeepers have never used, reports in most major newspapers said, quoting unnamed ruling party sources.
In a meeting with ruling party executives, Koizumi stressed the need for Japan to live up to its international responsibilities "instead of just talking about them," according to the Kyodo news service.
Japan was criticised by Washington for contributing only money, and not personnel, during the first Gulf War in the early 1990s.
The deployment would be a milestone for Japan's military, which is strictly limited by the constitution.
A special law allowing the dispatch for humanitarian missions in Iraq was passed by parliament in July, but only under the condition that troops be sent to a place deemed safe and away from combat.
Opponents of the dispatch say Iraq is still not secure enough to fulfill that requirement, and argue that the troops could be drawn into fighting to protect themselves.
Such dangers were underscored last weekend, when two diplomats were gunned down near the northern Iraqi city of Tikrit.
They were Japan's first casualties since the US-led war in Iraq began in March.
No Japanese soldier has been killed in combat since World War II.
Officials have stressed that the area of Iraq where the troops will be deployed is less dangerous than Tikrit.
Still, opposition leaders have vowed to derail Koizumi's plan.
"It will be another month before the dispatch actually takes place," Democratic party leader Naoto Kan told a rally in anticipation of the decision.
"We plan to put all our efforts into putting a stop to the troop dispatch to Iraq."
Most Japanese lean toward the opposition.
Polls indicate only about a third of voters support Koizumi's plan.
İAAP 2003
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/World/story_53692.asp
Following the Cabinet meeting, Koizumi was to go before the nation to explain why he was pushing ahead with the controversial plan, which opposition leaders say could draw troops into fighting and violate Japan's post-war pacifist constitution.
Agriculture Minister Yoshiyuki Kamei confirmed Cabinet had approved the dispatch of troops to southeastern Iraq to restore water services, offer medical and other humanitarian assistance, and help rebuild schools and other infrastructure.
The dispatch, expected to begin over the next month, will involve elements of Japan's land, sea and air forces.
According to media reports, 600 ground troops will be sent, along with armoured vehicles and up to six naval ships, including destroyers.
Eight aircraft, including three C130 transport planes, will also be deployed.
The total number of troops would be about 1,000.
Facing intense political pressures and a sceptical public, Koizumi has refrained from setting a date or announcing other details.
But he has repeatedly vowed to dispatch the troops as soon as the situation in the region is secure enough.
The troops will stay for six months to one year, and, as defensive measures, carry rocket-propelled grenade launchers and other arms that Japanese peacekeepers have never used, reports in most major newspapers said, quoting unnamed ruling party sources.
In a meeting with ruling party executives, Koizumi stressed the need for Japan to live up to its international responsibilities "instead of just talking about them," according to the Kyodo news service.
Japan was criticised by Washington for contributing only money, and not personnel, during the first Gulf War in the early 1990s.
The deployment would be a milestone for Japan's military, which is strictly limited by the constitution.
A special law allowing the dispatch for humanitarian missions in Iraq was passed by parliament in July, but only under the condition that troops be sent to a place deemed safe and away from combat.
Opponents of the dispatch say Iraq is still not secure enough to fulfill that requirement, and argue that the troops could be drawn into fighting to protect themselves.
Such dangers were underscored last weekend, when two diplomats were gunned down near the northern Iraqi city of Tikrit.
They were Japan's first casualties since the US-led war in Iraq began in March.
No Japanese soldier has been killed in combat since World War II.
Officials have stressed that the area of Iraq where the troops will be deployed is less dangerous than Tikrit.
Still, opposition leaders have vowed to derail Koizumi's plan.
"It will be another month before the dispatch actually takes place," Democratic party leader Naoto Kan told a rally in anticipation of the decision.
"We plan to put all our efforts into putting a stop to the troop dispatch to Iraq."
Most Japanese lean toward the opposition.
Polls indicate only about a third of voters support Koizumi's plan.
İAAP 2003
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/World/story_53692.asp