With the Extraordinary Session of the Diet set to open on September 12, Prime Minister Fukuda Yasuo is determined to have the current New Anti-terrorism Special Measures Law extended to enable the Maritime Self-Defense Force to continue refueling U.S. and other warships in the Indian Ocean.
The ruling coalition agreed that the session will last 70 days. However, according to reports, the government is considering extending the session to get the bill enacted.
There was a media report that in the Japan-U.S. summit talks held immediately before the G8 Summit in Hokkaido, Fukuda secretly promised U.S. President George W. Bush to make efforts to make it possible for Japan to continue assisting in the war in Afghanistan by extending the New Anti-terrorism Special Measures Law after it expires on January 16.
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Thomas Schieffer put similar pressure on Japan during his meetings with Fukuda on July 20 and with Liberal Democratic Party Secretary General Aso Taro on August 20.
There is no doubt that the prime minister is ready to accept without condition the U.S. demand that Japan keep on assisting in the U.S. war.
The war against Afghanistan was launched seven years ago by the United States in retaliation for the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but it has only exacerbated the situation in which many civilians have been killed, far from eliminating terrorism by military force.
Japan’s refueling mission in the Indian Ocean under the special measures law is inseparable from the war in Afghanistan. It is natural for people to call for the withdrawal of MSDF ships from the area.
Fukuda argues that the refueling mission will help protect oil tankers to Japan from possible pirates’ attacks. But it is an international task that has nothing to do with assisting the war. The government must stop such an argument, which is not referred to by the law.
The recent killing of a Japanese non-governmental agricultural aid worker shows how serious the situation in Afghanistan is.
There is no choice but for the Japanese government to stop assisting in the U.S. war and withdraw the MSDF from the Indian Ocean. It is called upon to fully use diplomatic means in order to achieve the peaceful resolution of the Afghanistan question.
