Here in Japan the clock is ticking. The one on the special Anti-Terrorism law, the one that authorizes JMSDF ships to refuel ships supporting operations in Afghanistan. This week the oldest ship in the United States Navy was drawn into the argument. The Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan) is vowing to defeat the bill and are citing this as an example of where the law could lead:
A Japanese peace group said last month that the logbook of the U.S. oil ship Pecos and other materials suggested the Maritime Self-Defense Force ship Tokiwa in February 2003 gave illegal logistic support for the war in Iraq by indirectly supplying oil to the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk, which took part in the war.
That was the start of the argument this week. Japanese TV has run so many videos of refueling hoses going across, you would think I was back aboard the USS Coral Sea showering in aviation fuel that always found its way into the water system. (I’ll have to tell you the story of how my roommate once set our sink on fire sometime…….Like any proper naval aviation professional, I got my conning along side qual-but mostly I slept through along side times).
Now the ship count is expanding:
Minshuto member Kazuhiro Haraguchi alleged in a Lower House Budget Committee session that the MSDF fuel went to the Aegis destroyer USS Paul Hamilton, “one of the core ships used by the United States in the Iraq war.”
Haraguchi said the fuel provided by the MSDF was used in the Iraq war, a violation of the anti-terrorism special measures law.
The law, under which the MSDF has been providing fuel in the Indian Ocean, is limited to supporting coalition efforts to fight terrorism in Afghanistan.
Government officials have been denying for the past few days in the Diet that the fuel was diverted to U.S. ships involved in the Iraq war. The government plans to submit a bill to the Diet to continue the refueling operations after the current law expires on Nov. 1.
The Paul Hamilton is said to have launched at least 50 Tomahawk cruise missiles during the Iraq war, the most by any U.S. Navy ship.
If this all seems odd to you, rest assured its just like politics in the US. This is about the opposition party flexing its muscles. When Abe-san was in office it seemed like it was working, mainly because Abe behaved like a buffoon. Now that Fukada is Prime Minister-well the DPJ have a much tougher fight on their hands. Only, Ozawa-san (DPJ leader) like Nancy Pelosi has yet to realize it.
However for now, DPJ is going to keep trying-partially enabled by the fact that anything related to the Iraq war is very unpopular here. Moreover, there is an undertone of feeling that Abe and his policies were going too far when Japan had more important domestic issues that still need to be dealt with. However the debate is definitely an odd one. I still amazed at some of the evidence the DPJ and the peace group are producing. Like the Kitty Hawk deck log. How the heck did they get that? They also have a copy of the Kitty Hawk’s command history.
Its been interesting to watch some of the TV coverage-there was shouting in the Diet today-but I could not tell if it was about this issue or the bigger issue of postal reform. Prime Minister Fukada has asked Ozawa-san to meet with him to discuss a compromise-lots of folks think it will be tough for him to dodge that.
And in the mean time………like sands through the hour glass, the clock keeps ticking.