Foreign Ministry sets up new division on piracy, maritime safety

TOKYO, Nov. 4 Kyodo - The Japanese Foreign Ministry launched a new division Tuesday to take charge of maritime security issues, such as piracy and terrorism, in a move that came just weeks after Prime Minister Taro Aso expressed a positive note on sending
anti-piracy ships from the Self-Defense Forces to Somalia.

''The frequent occurrence of piracy in the Asian and African regions is not
just a threat to Japan's sea transportation but an issue for the whole
international community,'' Foreign Ministry Press Secretary Kazuo Kodama said.
''Anti-piracy measures are an urgent task our government must tackle.''
The new Maritime Security Policy Division was established under the Foreign
Policy Bureau's National Security Policy Division and will be in charge of
drawing up comprehensive diplomatic policies related to maritime safety, Kodama
said. But he did not elaborate on what measures are being eyed.
Also on Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry relocated its International Peace
Cooperation Division to fall under the bureau's National Security Policy
Division instead of the United Nations Policy Division.
This move is aimed at ensuring smoother and more unified procedures in
arranging peacekeeping cooperation, operations to support Iraq's
reconstruction, and other missions, the ministry said.
The government has begun discussions on considering legislation to enable the
deployment of SDF vessels to protect commercial freighter and other ships from
piracy. Aso expressed his support in mid-October.
However, due to concerns among some in the ruling coalition over coherence
under Japan's pacifist Constitution, which bans the use of force to settle
international conflicts, full-fledged deliberations on the issue are likely to
be postponed until after an anticipated House of Representatives election.
Securing the sea lanes is among the top concerns for Japan, which depends
heavily on oil shipped from the Middle East.
Pirates seized a Japanese-owned freighter in July and hijacked a
Japanese-operated tanker just off the coast of Somalia in August. Another
Japanese-operated cargo ship was fired at by pirates also in waters off Somalia
just a few days later.
==Kyodo