Japan's Afghan naval refuel mission to end Friday

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Source: AFP

Japan's Afghan naval refuel mission to end Friday

(AFP) – 2 hours ago

TOKYO — Japan's defence minister on Friday ordered the end of a naval refuelling mission in the Indian Ocean that has supported the US-led war in Afghanistan since 2001, his ministry said.

"The defence minister issued an order at 11:00 am (0200 GMT) today to the fleet commander to end refuelling activity in the Indian Ocean at 12:00 pm on January 15 and to send the troops home," the ministry said in a statement.

The move fulfils a pledge by Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's centre-left government, which took office in September vowing a less subservient relationship with security partner the United States.

Shortly before issuing the order, Defence Minister Toshimi Kitazawa told reporters that the two-ship mission would perform its last refuelling operation later Friday before heading back.

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Japan Ends Refueling Ships in Support of War in Afghanistan

By Sachiko Sakamaki and Takashi Hirokawa


Jan. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said Japan today will end its refueling of ships in the Indian Ocean to aid U.S.-led operations in Afghanistan.

Hatoyama thanks navy personnel who provided fuel and water to ships from Pakistan, the U.S. and other countries, and said Japan will continue to participate in the international efforts against terrorism, according to a statement. Japan in November said it will provide as much as $5 billion over five years to help in the reconstruction of war-torn Afghanistan.

“I think more direct, civilian assistance is important for Afghanistan to secure economic stability and peace,” Hatoyama told reporters today in Tokyo.

Japan’s navy had refueled warships in the Indian Ocean since 2001. Hatoyama’s Democratic Party of Japan ousted the Liberal Democratic Party from 50 years of almost unbroken rule and vowed to end the operations. ... http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=aLKi3fb1j9NA