A House of Councilors panel passed a bill Friday that will enable the Self-Defense Forces to lend noncombat support to the U.S.-led antiterrorism campaign, moving the legislation another step closer to realization.

The bill cleared the Upper House's foreign affairs and defense committee in a vote backed by the ruling coalition -- the Liberal Democratic Party, New Komeito and the New Conservative Party.

Another bill enabling the SDF to protect its own facilities and U.S. bases in Japan also cleared the committee in a vote in the evening.

The two bills, along with a bill that would allow the Japan Coast Guard to open fire on suspicious vessels, are expected to pass the Upper House on Monday afternoon.

The government-sponsored bill on dispatching the SDF allows the troops to provide medical services, supplies and other logistic support for the U.S.-led retaliation for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.

It also permits the SDF to engage in search-and-rescue operations and carry out humanitarian relief activities.

The bill limits the scope of SDF activities to noncombat roles. The troops will be allowed to operate on foreign soil for the first time under the bill, provided Japan obtains consent from the relevant governments.

It eases current restrictions on the use of weapons, allowing SDF personnel to protect themselves but also those "who have come under their control," such as refugees and injured soldiers.

Under the new law, if the Defense Agency chief orders the dispatch of SDF troops, the government would be obliged to obtain Diet approval for the order within 20 days. Prior to a vote on the bill, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda told the committee session that the government will seek fresh Diet approval if there are major changes in the plans for the SDF.

"We will seek approval anew if any changes occur in the basic preconditions" of the operations, such as a change in the country to which the SDF are dispatched, Fukuda said.