Japan could consider dispatching Self-Defense Forces minesweepers to the Strait of Hormuz if a cease-fire is reached in the ongoing regional conflict, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said. He told reporters that Japan’s mine-clearing capabilities are world-class and that deployment would be discussed “let’s say (the parties have entered into a) cease-fire, and in the event that mines pose an obstacle, we may have to think about it.” He also said, “Japan’s minesweeping technology is at the top level in the world.”
Motegi made the remarks after high-level talks in Washington last week. He said U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to recognize Japan’s constitutional and legal limits on the use of its forces, noting that Mr. Trump nodded while Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi explained statutory restrictions on dispatching Japanese naval vessels. Motegi added that no specific promise was made at the summit and there are no immediate domestic issues requiring further deliberation.
Tensions in the region remain high following the Feb. 28 airstrikes by U.S. and Israeli forces against Iran. Japanese officials and analysts have warned that the escalation could have major consequences for global energy security and Middle Eastern stability, a particular concern for Japan, which depends on the region for more than 90 percent of its crude oil imports.
Separately, Motegi confirmed that one of two Japanese nationals detained in Iran has been released. The individual, who had been held since June, left Iran via Azerbaijan last Wednesday and arrived back in Japan on Sunday in good health, Motegi said. The government is intensifying efforts to secure the release of the second detainee, whom media reports identify as the Tehran bureau chief of public broadcaster NHK and say was taken into custody on Jan. 20.
Tokyo indicated that any decision to send minesweepers would depend on an improvement in the security situation and legal clearance under Japan’s constitutional constraints. Officials say discussions would weigh the need to protect international shipping and energy supplies against domestic legal and political limits on the deployment of the Self-Defense Forces.
