The government is set to extend Japan's troop deployment in Iraq beyond Dec. 14 for another year, although Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has not adequately explained why an extension is necessary. Nor has the Diet debated the question in detail. A joint opposition bill aimed at ending the dispatch has been scrapped without being put to a vote.
Nearly 600 Self-Defense Force troops are stationed in Samawah, southern Iraq, to support humanitarian and reconstruction efforts in the area. But the security situation in Iraq remains volatile, even as the country prepares for its first free elections in January. What is needed now is a fundamental review of the SDF mission. A troop withdrawal should not be ruled out.
The mission, which started a year ago, has raised various issues. Perhaps the most important one is that the dispatch stems from Tokyo's support of a war -- an invasion launched by the United States without an explicit mandate from the U.N. Security Council -- whose international legitimacy was questioned. The war has strained international relations, casting a shadow over Japan's aid activities as well.