Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone said Friday the incoming government led by the Democratic Party of Japan must clarify how it intends to participate in the war on terrorism if it intends to end the Maritime Self-Defense Force's mission in the Indian Ocean.
Touching on the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in the United States, Nakasone told reporters that the refueling mission by the MSDF should not be mistaken as unrelated to Japan's interests.
"The efforts conducted in the Indian Ocean may seem distant from us, but 24 Japanese lives were taken" in 9/11, the foreign minister said, adding that Tokyo must maintain its role in the U.S.-led antiterrorism operations in and around Afghanistan.