The Lower House has approved a special bill that would allow Japan to aid in the reconstruction of war-ravaged Iraq. The bill is expected to be enacted late this month after the Upper House passes it. Under the new law, about 1,000 troops of the Self-Defense Forces will go to Iraq, beginning in October, to provide logistic support to U.S. and British forces in humanitarian relief, reconstruction efforts and peacekeeping operations. This will be the first time that SDF troops go overseas to help with the reconstruction of a nation under the rule of multilateral forces.
Japan has dispatched SDF troops overseas before -- under emergency laws to deal with crises related to the Persian Gulf War, 9/11 terrorist attacks and Iraq war. But in each crisis there have been strict limits to the application of the government's makeshift measures.
The problem is that Japan's postwar governments have clung to a long-established security-policy framework that changed little through the second half of the 20th century. There is an urgent need to establish a law defining Japan's contribution to international peace as a basic SDF mission.