A Maritime Self-Defense Force amphibious ship carrying supplies for Ground Self-Defense Force troops in Iraq left for Kuwait on Friday morning from the Hokkaido port of Muroran.
The 8,900-ton Osumi, escorted throughout its journey by the 4,550-ton destroyer Murasame, is scheduled to arrive in early March in Kuwait, where GSDF troops will receive the supplies and haul them overland to their base in Samawah, southern Iraq.
"With this, the three Self-Defense Forces of ground, sea and air will engage in Iraq reconstruction support," Defense Agency Director General Shigeru Ishiba told a news conference.
The departure of the vessels marks the first time Japan has deployed all three branches of the SDF for overseas operations.