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Japan Times Japan to send second fleet to Indian
Ocean
The government has decided to send its second fleet, comprised of three Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyers and one supply ship, to the Indian Ocean next month as part of Japan's continued noncombat support of the U.S.-led war on terrorism, government sources said Sunday. Though the U.S. attacks in Afghanistan have ended, antiterrorism operations by the U.S. military are expected to continue, and Japan's support will be necessary, the sources said. The first fleet of MSDF ships was dispatched last November to the Indian Ocean, and the second fleet is expected to take over the duty of the first, they said. The MSDF operation was authorized by a law enacted Oct. 29 to allow Japan's military forces to provide logistic support for the U.S. attacks. Since Dec. 2, the MSDF supply vessel Hamana has been in the Indian Ocean supplying fuel to U.S. ships that are taking part in military operations in Afghanistan. According to Defense Agency sources, the second fleet will include three destroyers -- Haruna, from Maizuru Base, Kyoto; Setogiri, from Ominato Base in Aomori Prefecture; Sawakaze, from Sasebo Base in Nagasaki Prefecture; and a supply ship, Tokiwa, from Yokosuka Base in Kanagawa Prefecture. In addition, four patrol helicopters based in Tateyama, Chiba Prefecture, will be aboard the escort ships, and about 900 MSDF personnel will be sent for the operation. Along with the plan to dispatch the second fleet, the Defense Agency is studying the possibility of extending the period of time the MSDF can provide support for the U.S. operations in the area. According to the basic plan of operations endorsed by the government, the period that Japan will provide support for the U.S. forces was initially set for six months, through May 19. But it was shortened until the end of March in the actual working plan. With the dispatch of the second fleet, the government will try to extend the period until May, the sources said. Senior officials of the Defense Agency said that it has no legal problem extending the period to May because the working plan stipulates that "the period can be extended until May 19 depending on the situation." If necessary, the government will consider sending a third fleet and extending the period beyond May, they added. The Japan Times: Jan. 28, 2002 Japan, U.S. set to begin strategy dialogue in
May The sources said Vice Foreign Minister Yoshiji Nogami, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage and other officials will attend the meeting, which will address international terrorism, China, the Korean Peninsula, regional and international issues, as well as economic issues. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and U.S. President George W. Bush agreed to hold the dialogue during their meeting at Camp David, Maryland, in June last year. The talks did not go ahead as planned, however, as the U.S. government became preoccupied in its response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Japan has held similar level talks with Britain, France and Germany, but its highest working-level consultations with the U.S. have been led by deputy foreign ministers, the sources said.
Japan expert resignsWASHINGTON (Kyodo) Torkel Patterson, senior National Security Council director for Asian affairs and one of the leading experts on Japanese affairs within the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush, resigned Friday, Japanese and U.S. sources said Friday. The sources did not provide any details on the resignation, only saying that Patterson, also special assistant to President Bush, left the White House for "personal reasons." Bush's appointment of Patterson, who has extensive experience in Japanese affairs and close ties with Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, had been considered to be an indication of his administration's policy of giving priority to Japan in determining Asian policies. Patterson's resignation comes just as the White House is preparing for Bush's visit to Japan, South Korea and China in mid-February. A retired naval officer, Patterson served as senior director for Japan in the office of the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs between 1988 and 1991 and as NSC director for Asian affairs from 1991 until 1993. While in the navy, he served as deputy to the commander of U.S. Naval Forces in Japan. He also studied Japanese politics and Japan-U.S. relations at the University of Tsukuba in Japan. From 1998 to 2000, he was headquartered in Tokyo as president of the Japanese unit of U.S. defense giant Raytheon Co. The Japan Times: Jan. 27, 2002
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