September 11, 2022

The Japanese Communist Party Kyoto Prefectural Assemblymembers’ group on September 9 submitted to the governor a written request demanding that the governor protest the entry of a U.S. warship into Maizuru Port and oppose the use of the civil port for military purposes.

Two days earlier, the U.S. Navy amphibious transport vessel USS New Orleans (LPD-18) arrived at a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force base located at the east side of Maizuru Port.

In the submission, the JCP assemblymembers’ group pointed out that it was reported that the U.S. warship made a port call at Maizuru for taking on supplies and fuel as well as for giving the crew a rest. However, the JCP went on to point out that the LPD-18 is designed to have a number of soldiers land on an invasion front in a war. The JCP group said that the latest entry of the U.S. warship made it clear that the Japanese and U.S. governments jointly seek to increase the use of Maizuru Port for military purposes.

The JCP assemblymembers’ group pointed out that the entry of the USS New Orleans into Maizuru Port runs counter to the prefecture’s policy of developing Maizuru Port as a port of peace based on the lessons from history in which Maizuru Port played a major role as a military port during wartime. Furthermore, the JCP group said, “The prefectural government allowed the LPD-18 to make a port call without prior consultation with the prefectural government, which is totally unacceptable. As the administrator of the port, it should have required the U.S. military vessel to follow proper procedures.”

In response, a prefectural government official said, “We were notified by the U.S military that the USS New Orleans may make a port call at Maizuru. The application was filed by the U.S. vessel only shortly before arrival.”

JCP Prefectural Assemblymembers’ group head Harada Kan said, “The prefectural government should not set a bad example of enabling U.S. military vessels tasked to transport weapons and soldiers to battlefields to use Japanese civil ports without restrictions. It should maintain its policy to not allow the entry of U.S. military ships without prior consultation.”