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Sunday, February 08, 2009
TOKYO, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Japanese Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada said he expects to issue an order to dispatch Japanese destroyers to waters off Somalia for anti-piracy patrols in early March, Japanese media reported on Sunday.
It was the first time that Hamada, who spoke to reporters in Germany on Saturday, has provided a specific timeframe for the dispatch, which Japan has been debating for months.
Deciding on a naval dispatch has been a headache for Japan, whose overseas military activities are tightly restricted by its post-World War Two pacifist constitution.
In December, Chinese destroyers joined a growing flotilla that included ships sent to the region from the United States, India, Russia and the European Union, in a bid to curb piracy.
In a related development, a Japanese Defence Ministry team left Japan on Sunday for a fact-finding mission that will help pave the way for the upcoming deployment.
The team will visit countries neighbouring Somalia, including Yemen and Oman, where they will inspect ports and airfield facilities that Japan's navy will use, Kyodo said. (Reporting by Miho Yoshikawa; Editing by David Fox)
Source: Reuters, Feb 09, 2009