Defense Minister Tomomi Inada shrugged off Wednesday a news report on ministry notes suggesting her involvement in an alleged coverup of controversial logs that listed the daily activity of Japanese troops serving as peacekeepers in South Sudan.

Inada has denied a role in the suspected coverup after the allegations surfaced, insisting she was not informed in the first place that the logs — initially said to have been discarded by Ground Self-Defense Force members — were actually preserved by them.

While suspicion continues to mount through media reports, a government source said final arrangements are underway to announce the outcome of the Defense Ministry's months-long internal investigation on the issue on Friday.