Japan to Extend Air Force Support for Iraq

Japan still supports Iraq

Japan plans to extend for another two years a law allowing its air force to fly support missions to Iraq, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Tuesday, the fourth anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion.

Abe told reporters that the decision by a ruling Liberal Democratic Party defence panel to extend the law, which is set to expire in July, had been made after considering the situation in Iraq and international developments.

"We would like to continue to fulfill our responsibility," he said. The legislation is expected to pass given the ruling coalition's majority in parliament.

Also on Tuesday, Defence Minister Fumio Kyuma, who angered Washington earlier this year when he said starting the Iraq war had been a mistake, told reporters that he wanted to visit the country to check the situation on the ground.

But he added that no firm date had been set.

Japan withdrew its 600 ground troops last year after a non-combat mission lasting more than two years.

About 200 air force personnel have remained in Kuwait, from where they airlift supplies to the U.S. military in Iraq.

The troop dispatch -- welcomed by Tokyo's closest security ally, Washington -- stretched the limits of Japan's pacifist constitution and was opposed by many voters, although approval rose after the soldiers came home without having fired a shot or suffering any casualties.