Japan on Friday ordered two warships to join an anti-piracy mission off Somalia, one of the most active deployments yet for a military restrained by the countrys post-war pacifist constitution. US, European and Chinese naval vessels are already deployed in the Gulf of Aden to fend off pirates behind more than 100 attacks on ships last year.
The two Japanese destroyers with 400 crew were to set sail Saturday for the Gulf to protect cargo ships in one of the worlds busiest shipping lanes near the Suez canal that links Europe with Asia, the defence ministry said. "Piracy off Somalia is a threat to Japan and the international community," Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada said.
The maritime mission has divided public opinion in Japan, which under the post-World War II constitution permits its soldiers in international disputes to use force only for self-defence and to protect Japanese nationals.
The government planned to submit a bill later Friday that would widen the scope of force that its military personnel can use against pirates and allow them to protect foreign vessels and nationals as well as Japanese. The two destroyers - the 4,650-ton Sazanami and 4,550-ton Samidare - will each carry two patrol helicopters and two speedboats, to be used by members of the navys commando-style Special Boarding Unit.