Japan Seeks To Withdraw Its Military From Iraq By Year's End

Team Infidel

Forum Spin Doctor
New York Times
September 12, 2008
Pg. 10

By Martin Fackler
TOKYO — Japan said Thursday that it wanted to withdraw its remaining military personnel from Iraq by year’s end, wrapping up an overseas mission that had pleased Washington but divided this pacifist nation.
Defense Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said the country was negotiating a withdrawal of its small military airlift mission because of the improved security situation in Iraq. He said the Iraqi government had asked for a reduction in the presence of foreign military.
Mr. Hayashi said his country wanted to shift its priority to Afghanistan, where a Taliban insurgency has been stepping up attacks. The Japanese have ferried equipment and foreign troops between Kuwait and Iraq, including to Baghdad, since 2006 in a mission that involves cargo aircraft and 210 members of Japan’s air force. Before that, from 2004 to 2006, Japan deployed 600 ground troops on a humanitarian mission in the southern Iraqi city of Samawa, in the country’s first overseas deployment since World War II.
Japan also still has refueling ships in the Indian Ocean to support American and other vessels involved in the war in Afghanistan. “The importance of operations in Afghanistan has increased,” Mr. Hayashi told reporters, but he gave no more details.
However, the future of the Afghan mission is also in question as the law currently authorizing it comes up for renewal in January. Renewing the law may prove difficult because the opposition party, the Democratic Party of Japan, which controls the upper house of Parliament, is against renewal.
Mr. Hayashi said Japan was in talks with Iraq, the United States and the United Nations about ending the airlift mission. Japan’s foreign minister, Masahiko Komura, said even if the airlift mission left Iraq, Japan would continue to support Iraq in nonmilitary ways. However, he was not specific.
“Even if we withdraw the Air Self-Defense personnel, our resolve to support Iraq will not change,” he said.
 
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