Government releases 'text' of 'understanding' but under fire

The government and the Foreign Ministry were under fire at the June 21 House of Councilors Special Committee meeting when they released a Japanese record of "understanding" concerning missions and status of the Self-Defense Forces in Iraq under the multinational force. The government has explained that the "understanding" was reached with the U.S. and British governments early in June.

The opposition parties maintained that the released record is not what the Prime Minister has promised to present. The committee reserved its acceptance and demanded that the government make public the official English text.

The record of "understanding" provided by the government includes the following points: the UN regarded humanitarian assistance work as part of multinational force tasks; the SDF will exclusively engage in this work under the unified headquarters of the multinational force; and it can withdraw from Iraq anytime if Japan decides to do so.

The presented "text" was almost the same as what Foreign Minister Kawaguchi Yoriko explained at the House of Representative committee meeting on June 18.

The government has used the "oral understanding" as the only evidence to convince the public that the SDF will neither come under the unified command of the multinational force in Iraq nor commit itself to using force.

On June 17 and 20, Japanese Communist Party chair Shii Kazuo urged Prime Minister Koizumi to submit the written "oral understanding" to the parliament.

Also, the document failed to refer to who were committed to the "understanding" from both sides.

Asked by Koizumi Chikashi (JCP) if the text was in English or in Japanese, a foreign ministry official answered that they used English in the talks.

At a press conference later in the day, JCP Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi denounced the government for betraying its promise to show the text of the "understanding". (end)