ID :
52309
Thu, 03/26/2009 - 04:23
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/52309
The shortlink copeid
Japan to decide Fri. on destroying debris from N. Korean rocket+
TOKYO, March 25 Kyodo - Japan will decide on Friday to issue an order for the destruction of debris from a North Korean rocket in case its planned launch fails, government sources said Wednesday.
Such an unprecedented decision will be made at a meeting of the Security
Council of Japan to be held at the prime minister's office, and Defense
Minister Yasukazu Hamada will give the order to the Self-Defense Forces soon
afterward, the sources said.
Based on the destruction order, Patriot guided-missile fire units deployed at
the Air Self-Defense Force's Hamamatsu base in Shizuoka Prefecture will be
moved to Akita and Iwate prefectures in northeastern Japan, where rocket debris
from a failed launch might fall, they said.
Two Maritime Self-Defense Force Aegis destroyers capable of launching Standard
Missile-3 ballistic missile interceptors will also be deployed in the Sea of
Japan and the Pacific Ocean, the sources said.
Prime Minister Taro Aso told reporters on Wednesday that the government will
try to keep the public informed about how it is preparing for and responses to
the planned rocket launch, which Pyongyang says is to put a satellite into
orbit.
''The government will take the utmost care, including explaining to the public,
because there are some local areas where (people) are particularly concerned
(about the launch),'' he said.
Preparations appear to have begun already. Local governments in Akita said
Wednesday that they have been notified of the planned movement of special ASDF
vehicles loaded with missile-related equipment within their jurisdictions.
Earlier in the day, Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura met with Hamada and
Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone to discuss the country's response to the
North Korean move.
''We discussed where we should seek grounds for interception,'' Kawamura told a
news conference, suggesting that the government is considering taking a
countermeasure based on Article 82-2 of the Self-Defense Forces Law.
The provisions set out rules on destroying ballistic missiles or similar
objects, such as rockets and satellites, in cases where they do not constitute
armed attacks on Japan.
''Whether (the grounds) will be (the article's) Paragraph 1 or 3 is a matter of
whether the probability of (the rocket) dropping (on Japan) after it is
launched is high or not,'' Kawamura said.
Under the article's Paragraph 1, the defense minister can issue a destruction
order upon the Cabinet's approval when it is feared a rocket will fall on
Japanese soil or waters.
Paragraph 3 stipulates that even though the possibility of a rocket falling
onto Japan is unclear, the minister can issue an order to the SDF beforehand to
destroy it based on pre-approved guidelines when there is a situational change
and the object is likely to fall on Japan.
Unlike the former option, which must be approved by the Cabinet to be exercised
-- and therefore will be made public -- the adoption of the latter option is
not to be disclosed to the public to ensure maximum flexibility for the SDF.
The government's planned response under Paragraph 3 would be something not
conceived of when the provisions were added to the law in 2005.
The government was initially inclined toward a response based on Paragraph 1,
but objections have been lodged by the Foreign Ministry and the Cabinet
Secretariat, apparently over concerns that such a course of action may
unnecessarily upset North Korea, according to government sources.
Kawamura said if the planned rocket launch is what Pyongyang claims it to be,
the probability of the rocket falling onto Japanese territory will be ''very
low.''
''We will finalize how we will apply the law to such a judgment based on
discussions at the security council meeting,'' he said, noting that the meeting
will take place on either Thursday or Friday.
North Korea has said it will put a satellite into space between April 4 and 8,
but Japan, South Korea and the United States suspect that the planned rocket
launch may actually be a test-firing of a long-range ballistic missile.
Tokyo is concerned that if the launch fails, rocket debris would fall on
Japanese territory, perhaps somewhere around Akita and Iwate, over which the
rocket is expected to fly if it travels as planned.
Officials of the Akita prefectural government and the municipal government of
Oga in the prefecture said they have received notification from the ASDF's
Hamamatsu base about the planned movement of vehicles.
Four guided-missile fire units capable of launching Patriot Advanced
Capability-3 interceptors have been deployed to the Hamamatsu base in Shizuoka
Prefecture.
In a separate move believed to be linked to the regional developments, the U.S.
Navy said Wednesday that it has canceled a visit by the Aegis guided-missile
destroyer Hopper to the Sea of Japan port of Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, citing
''operations reasons.''
The visit was originally scheduled for Thursday.
==Kyodo
Such an unprecedented decision will be made at a meeting of the Security
Council of Japan to be held at the prime minister's office, and Defense
Minister Yasukazu Hamada will give the order to the Self-Defense Forces soon
afterward, the sources said.
Based on the destruction order, Patriot guided-missile fire units deployed at
the Air Self-Defense Force's Hamamatsu base in Shizuoka Prefecture will be
moved to Akita and Iwate prefectures in northeastern Japan, where rocket debris
from a failed launch might fall, they said.
Two Maritime Self-Defense Force Aegis destroyers capable of launching Standard
Missile-3 ballistic missile interceptors will also be deployed in the Sea of
Japan and the Pacific Ocean, the sources said.
Prime Minister Taro Aso told reporters on Wednesday that the government will
try to keep the public informed about how it is preparing for and responses to
the planned rocket launch, which Pyongyang says is to put a satellite into
orbit.
''The government will take the utmost care, including explaining to the public,
because there are some local areas where (people) are particularly concerned
(about the launch),'' he said.
Preparations appear to have begun already. Local governments in Akita said
Wednesday that they have been notified of the planned movement of special ASDF
vehicles loaded with missile-related equipment within their jurisdictions.
Earlier in the day, Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura met with Hamada and
Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone to discuss the country's response to the
North Korean move.
''We discussed where we should seek grounds for interception,'' Kawamura told a
news conference, suggesting that the government is considering taking a
countermeasure based on Article 82-2 of the Self-Defense Forces Law.
The provisions set out rules on destroying ballistic missiles or similar
objects, such as rockets and satellites, in cases where they do not constitute
armed attacks on Japan.
''Whether (the grounds) will be (the article's) Paragraph 1 or 3 is a matter of
whether the probability of (the rocket) dropping (on Japan) after it is
launched is high or not,'' Kawamura said.
Under the article's Paragraph 1, the defense minister can issue a destruction
order upon the Cabinet's approval when it is feared a rocket will fall on
Japanese soil or waters.
Paragraph 3 stipulates that even though the possibility of a rocket falling
onto Japan is unclear, the minister can issue an order to the SDF beforehand to
destroy it based on pre-approved guidelines when there is a situational change
and the object is likely to fall on Japan.
Unlike the former option, which must be approved by the Cabinet to be exercised
-- and therefore will be made public -- the adoption of the latter option is
not to be disclosed to the public to ensure maximum flexibility for the SDF.
The government's planned response under Paragraph 3 would be something not
conceived of when the provisions were added to the law in 2005.
The government was initially inclined toward a response based on Paragraph 1,
but objections have been lodged by the Foreign Ministry and the Cabinet
Secretariat, apparently over concerns that such a course of action may
unnecessarily upset North Korea, according to government sources.
Kawamura said if the planned rocket launch is what Pyongyang claims it to be,
the probability of the rocket falling onto Japanese territory will be ''very
low.''
''We will finalize how we will apply the law to such a judgment based on
discussions at the security council meeting,'' he said, noting that the meeting
will take place on either Thursday or Friday.
North Korea has said it will put a satellite into space between April 4 and 8,
but Japan, South Korea and the United States suspect that the planned rocket
launch may actually be a test-firing of a long-range ballistic missile.
Tokyo is concerned that if the launch fails, rocket debris would fall on
Japanese territory, perhaps somewhere around Akita and Iwate, over which the
rocket is expected to fly if it travels as planned.
Officials of the Akita prefectural government and the municipal government of
Oga in the prefecture said they have received notification from the ASDF's
Hamamatsu base about the planned movement of vehicles.
Four guided-missile fire units capable of launching Patriot Advanced
Capability-3 interceptors have been deployed to the Hamamatsu base in Shizuoka
Prefecture.
In a separate move believed to be linked to the regional developments, the U.S.
Navy said Wednesday that it has canceled a visit by the Aegis guided-missile
destroyer Hopper to the Sea of Japan port of Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, citing
''operations reasons.''
The visit was originally scheduled for Thursday.
==Kyodo
