Japan Press Weekly

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2007 October 24 - 30 [SDF]

Ex-top defense bureaucrat must be summoned over covering up amount of Japan’s fuel given to U.S. ship

In investigating the cover-up of the amount of fuel that the Maritime Self-Defense Force actually provided a U.S. supply ship in the Indian Ocean, it is essential to summon former Administrative Vice Defense Minister Moriya Takemasa for testimony.

The government until last September gave the Diet false information that the MSDF supply ship Tokiwa provided the U.S. tanker Pecos with only 200,000 gallons of oil in February 2003.

On October 22, only 12 days after Defense Minister Ishiba Shigeru clearly denied any falsification of the data about the amount of fuel, the Defense Ministry in its report handed to opposition parties unveiled that the Maritime Staff Office had kept hiding the actual amount from the beginning.

The key point is that using the false data as a rationale, the government has claimed that Japan’s fuel has never been used for the Iraq war and thus was not in violation of the Anti-Terrorism Special Measures Law.

Immediately after receiving Japan’s fuel at that time, the Pecos refueled the U.S. aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk, deployed to the area to take part in attacks against Iraq.

Based on the false data, then Defense Agency Director General Ishiba in May 2003 in the Diet stated, “200,000 gallons is an amount of oil that the Kitty Hawk consumes instantly. Therefore, the oil was not used for the Iraq war.”

If the actual amount of oil, 800,000 gallons, was revealed at that time, the government obviously could not have made such an assertion denying diversions of Japan’s fuel.

The then Defense Agency’s Defense Policy Bureau drew up a report that served as the basis of such government statements. It was Moriya that headed the Defense Policy Bureau at that time. In order for the Diet to thoroughly discuss the new anti-terrorism special measures bill, Moriya must testify in the Diet under oath.
- Akahata, October 24, 2007