Japan said yesterday it may withdraw its military airlift mission in Iraq by the end of the year in light of security improvements there and a growing focus on Afghanistan. The move would end Japan's military involvement in Iraq, a non-combat mission that has tested the limits of its pacifist constitution and divided a war-wary public.
Japanese officials said the withdrawal plan was still being negotiated in conjunction with Iraq, the United States and the United Nations.
"We're considering ending the mission by the end of the year," Defence Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters Thursday. Officials cited the improved security situation in Iraq and the expiration at the end of the year of the U.N. Security Council resolution that sets the legal basis for the US troop presence in Iraq.
Hayashi also suggested it was time to pay more attention to Afghanistan, where violence fuelled by the Taliban insurgency has spiked over the past year.
"In a way, the importance of operations in Afghanistan has increased," Hayashi said.
Japan's air force has airlifted materials and armed troops since 2006 from Kuwait to locations in Iraq, including Baghdad, in support of US-led forces. The mission has involved about 210 personnel. Prior to the airlift mission, Japan deployed about 600 army troops to the southern city of Samawah on a humanitarian mission from 2004 until 2006.