The government will send State Foreign Secretary Keizo Takemi to Tajikistan to look into the killing of four U.N. ceasefire observers, including Yutaka Akino of Japan, and to seek ways to achieve peace in the country, Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said.

Takemi is expected to leave for Tajikistan as early as today and stay for several days. Komura said Takemi's visit is also designed to send a message that Japan remains committed to contributing to peace in the region.

Akino and the three other U.N. observers were shot and killed late last month while patrolling a mountainous area.