2008/05/31 23:42Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura says the government will study the possibility of Japan's participation in peace-keeping activities in Afghanistan.
In his speech in Tokyo on Saturday, Machimura said the government plans to consider what Japan can do, either on land or at sea. The current mandate for the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean will expire next January.
Machimura said the government must win the understanding of the main opposition Democratic Party, which controls the Upper House. He indicated that it plans to study the possibility of participating in the International Security Assistance Force, ISAF, as suggested by Democratic Party leader Ichiro Ozawa.
Japan's Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba told reporters in Singapore on Saturday, that participation in ISAF will not be easy, citing the aggravated situation in Afghanistan.
Ishiba said that because Japanese Self-Defense Forces personnel can operate only in non-combat zones, such areas must be identified and their activities must be clearly defined.
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