Japan is not dispatching the Self-Defense Forces to Iraq because it was requested to do so by the United States, but because Japan's interests are involved, Defense Agency chief Shigeru Ishiba said Sunday.

"It's not because the U.S. asked us," Ishiba said on a Fuji TV talk show.

He said the SDF dispatch is necessary in consideration of Japan's dependence on Middle East oil and the need to help improve the daily lives of Iraqis, such as by securing sufficient water and electricity.