The government has ordered the Maritime Self-Defense Force to prepare to deploy a task force off Somalia to patrol against pirates. The piracy threat to an important international commercial shipping route has forced the government to order the dispatch of MSDF ships equipped with helicopters and high-speed boats.

The number of piracy incidents off Somalia jumped from 44 in 2007 to 111 in 2008, with three Japan-linked ships involved. This year at least 15 incidents were reported as of Jan. 29. A total of 42 ships with various national registries were seized in 2008.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the European Union and 17 nations have dispatched warships and aircraft to the area. Deployment by China and South Korea's decision to deploy must have prompted Prime Minister Taro Aso's decision. The hastiness of the decision is indicated by the fact that the MSDF task force will be dispatched under the maritime police-action provision of the Self-Defense Forces Law. Coping with piracy is fundamentally the Japan Coast Guard's job, and the law supposes that such action is limited to areas around Japan.