Japanese troops can be sent to post-war Iraq without new law: minister

TOKYO: Japan can dispatch its Self Defense Forces troops to help in the reconstruction of post-war Iraq without having to pass a new law, the Japanese foreign minister said Sunday.

“Even if there is not a new law, Self Defense Forces can be dispatched,” Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi told a Japan Broadcasting Corp. (NHK) talk show. “For example, they can participate in landmine removal.”

While stressing that international cooperation in the reconstruction effort was desirable, Kawaguchi said discussions had not progressed due to the fractures in the international community over the war.

“As an international community, discussions have not reached a concrete stage,” she said. “Relations have to be mended first and we have not seen that happen yet. “A new resolution by the United Nations would be very meaningful,” she said, but added how much the United Nations would participate or in what form was still unclear.

The minister made the comments as Japan was preparing to send 160 tents capable of sheltering 1,600 refugees to Jordan later Sunday evening aboard a government aircraft. The aid comes on top of 100 million dollars in grants that Japan has already offered to Jordan to help the country cope with the war in Iraq. —AFP

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