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Japan OKs troops for Iraq after transfer Japan's Cabinet on Friday approved a plan for Japanese troops now in Iraq on a humanitarian mission to remain as part of a multinational force after an interim government takes control.
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's pledge to let the military join other countries' forces in Iraq has divided the public at home, reflecting unease about putting Japanese troops in a combat zone more than a half-century after World War II.
It would also mean that hundreds of other military personnel shipping supplies into Iraq from neighboring countries would remain, the report said. Japan's Jiji News carried a similar report.
Earlier this month, the U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution allowing a multinational force to remain in Iraq until 2006 to provide security after the transfer of power to an interim Iraqi government on June 30 this year.
Koizumi has been eager to help the U.S.-led coalition and raise Japan's international profile by authorizing the largest — and most dangerous — overseas deployment since World War II. He has insisted that Japanese troops will not fight and will stick to non-combat roles when they become part of the multinational force in Iraq.
But his decision has drawn criticism from both ruling and opposition lawmakers, who have protested that Koizumi committed to an extension of the military's duty without a public debate.
Opposition lawmakers say Japanese soldiers serving in a multinational force would violate Japan's pacifist constitution because they would no longer operate under their own command and might be asked to engage in fighting.
Japan's post-war constitution prohibits force to resolve disputes. |
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