Yr-End Govt Approval Eyed for Japan SDF Middle East Mission

Tokyo, Dec. 2 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government is making arrangements to adopt by year-end a mission to dispatch the Self-Defense Forces for securing sea lane safety in the Middle East, officials have said. With a U.S.-led coalition set to start full safeguarding activities in the Strait of Hormuz and elsewhere as early as January next year, Tokyo sees a need for gathering intelligence swiftly in Middle East waters. But cabinet approval for such an SDF mission may be delayed, as there are some cautious views in the ruling bloc of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito. Legally speaking, an order by the defense minister is enough for an SDF dispatch. The government, however, will take a careful approach and put the matter to a cabinet meeting, according to the officials. After the dispatch is decided, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to give explanations to related countries over Japan's activities. The government plans to send a Maritime SDF destroyer for survey and research activities stipulated in the Defense Ministry establishment law. It also plans to utilize a patrol plane now on an antipiracy mission in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia. Following the expected cabinet approval, the patrol plane will soon start duties, while the destroyer is expected to depart Japan early in January. Waters to be covered by the new mission will be high seas in the Gulf of Oman, the northern Arabian Sea and the eastern side of the Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb off Yemen. Last month, the government asked the LDP and Komeito to complete their internal procedures to approve the SDF mission within this year. A senior Komeito official Monday suggested that its procedures will start soon. But some ruling lawmakers are cautious about the mission, saying that its goal and operation period are unclear. An LDP lawmaker with expertise on defense affairs remains opposed, calling for more discussions. It is still uncertain whether procedures in the ruling bloc will go smoothly, pundits said. "It is a big matter of concern for the nation," Fumio Kishida, chairman of the LDP's Policy Research Council, told reporters in Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan. "We'll be actively engaged in the matter as a ruling party." The U.S.-led coalition is seen starting escort activities for ships in waters around the Strait of Hormuz and other locations in late January. Japan has made it clear that it will not join the coalition. But it wants to share information with the coalition. "It'd be naive to think that you can gain information without manpower contributions," a Defense Ministry official said, adding that the period for the SDF activities will need to be similar to that of the coalition. END