Japan Press Weekly

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2015 August 19 - 25 [SDF]

400 million yen spent on SDF drills near Mt. Fuji

The Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force held large-scale military exercises on August 23 at the Higashi-Fuji maneuvering ground in Shizuoka Prefecture, which is located at the foot of Mt. Fuji, a UNESCO World Heritage site. A large amount of taxpayers’ money was spent for the drills, about 370 million yen on ammunition and more than 16 million yen on fuel.

In accordance with the controversial national security bills under Diet discussion, the GSDF conducted the exercises for providing logistic support to foreign troops abroad and retaking occupied remote islands. With the aim of softening the strong public opposition to the war bills, the defense authorities opened the live shell drills to the public.

During an exercise held on the previous day, two of the spectators were injured by fragments of a shell fired by a Type 10 tank. Defense Minister Nakatani Gen gave a speech ahead of the next day drills, expressing his apology to the injured.

At the same time, the minister called for public understanding for the war legislation as well as the government policy of expanding the production of armaments, claiming that the security environment around Japan is getting worse due to the activities of neighboring countries.

The war games involved 2,300 SDF personnel, 80 tanks and armored vehicles, 60 heavy guns, and 20 aircraft. In response to an SDF request, a U.S. Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey carried out a demonstration flight after the drills ended.