(Adnkronos) – “In the current situation with Iran, at the moment we are not considering launching a maritime security operation.” Thus, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi declared today in Parliament that Japan is not currently considering participating in the coalition to ensure the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, which Donald Trump continues to loudly request, also including Japan among the contacted countries. And Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, also speaking in Parliament, said that a possible maritime security operation would be “extremely difficult from a legal point of view,” adding, however, that she had not yet received a formal request from Washington.
“The question is what Japan should do on its own initiative and what is possible within our legal framework, rather than what is requested by the United States,” the prime minister further said, explaining that she had “asked various sections of different ministries to evaluate the matter.” The use of the Self-Defense Forces for missions abroad is a politically sensitive issue for Japan, whose Constitution contains an article, imposed by the US in 1947 after World War II, that formally renounces war and prohibits the maintenance of armed forces.
“The Japanese government is currently considering how to adopt the necessary measures – concluded the prime minister – obviously, these will be within the framework of Japanese law, but we are evaluating how to protect ships connected to Japan and their crews, and see what we can do.”
