The government should clearly define the "areas surrounding Japan" in which Japan can provide support to the U.S. military, Liberal Party leader Ichiro Ozawa said Thursday.
Speaking at a news conference following the launch of the coalition government, Ozawa said he believes the phrase is fully understood by the Liberal Democratic Party.
He also said he criticized the government's ambiguous definition of areas in which Japan can provide the U.S. support in times of emergency during his meeting Wednesday afternoon with LDP policy affairs chief Yukihiko Ikeda. The two had met as a part of the final phase of policy discussions on security issues between their respective parties.