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| Wednesday, 10 March 2004 |
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Japan cabinet endorses more "war contingency" bills TOKYO, Tuesday (Reuters) Japan's cabinet on Tuesday endorsed legislation to improve the nation's ability to defend itself from attack by boosting the military's capability to cooperate with U.S. forces and laying out evacuation procedures. The bills supplement landmark defence legislation enacted last June that gave the prime minister authority over ministries and local governments in case of attack, and put limits on individual rights to allow for smoother military operations. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told his cabinet he hoped the set of seven bills would be enacted during the current session of parliament ending on June 16, Chief Cabinet secretary Yasuo Fukuda told a news conference. "We want to enact the bills swiftly in this session of parliament," Fukuda said. "It would be appreciated if not only ruling parties but the opposition would support them." The latest batch of defence bills comes as Japan, whose military has long been constrained by its pacifist constitution, grapples with ways to respond to modern threats to its security, including the spectre of attack from nearby North Korea. Japan has also been stretching the constitutional limits on its military activities abroad, most recently with the controversial dispatch of troops to help rebuild Iraq. The new bills would enable the prime minister to let U.S. forces use private property if he deemed it necessary when Japan was attacked or if an attack was considered likely. |
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