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Final batch of Japanese troops returns from Iraq
Tokyo (AFP) Jul 25, 2006 The final batch of Japanese troops returned home from Iraq on Tuesday, ending the nation's most significant military operation since World War II, officials said. A chartered airplane carrying 280 of its 600 ground troops dispatched to the southern Iraqi province of Muthanna arrived at Tokyo's Haneda airport early Tuesday, a defense agency spokeswoman said. The mission, which helped provide water supplies and medical assistance for residents in the province since January 2004, was the first of its kind since Japan was forced by the United States to renounce war after World War II. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who touts his personal friendship with US President George W. Bush, went ahead with the Iraq deployment despite domestic opposition in a country that has been firmly pacifist for six decades. During their mission in Iraq, the Japanese troops suffered no casualties and did not fire their weapons. The mission relied on British and Australian troops for protection as the Japanese troops were barred from using force. Despite the withdrawal of ground troops from Iraq itself, Koizumi has promised to keep operating its Kuwait-based air force mission transporting goods and personnel for the US-led coalition to Baghdad. Japan, bidding to expand its global role to more than just a major economic power, has been gradually increasing its military position. It sent troops to Cambodia in 1993 as part of a UN force and dispatched a 1,000-strong force -- its largest since World War II -- to Indonesia and Thailand after the 2004 tsunami disaster. Japan learnt a bitter lesson from the US-led Gulf War in 1991, when it came in for heavy international criticism for not sending personnel, despite paying 13.5 billion dollars, or 20 percent, of the coalition bill. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters When the Earth Quakes A world of storm and tempest
Four injured as Typhoon Kaemi lashes Taiwan
Taipei (AFP) Jul 25, 2006 Typhoon Kaemi pounded Taiwan with strong winds and heavy rain overnight, forcing flights to be cancelled and leaving four people injured, rescuers said Tuesday. |
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