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2011 December 7 - 13 [SDF]

SDF’s mid-air refueling for US could be expanded to NATO

Akahata editorial (excerpts)

It has been discovered that the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force in December last year conducted a mid-air refueling practice exercise jointly with the U.S. forces in accordance with guidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

The activity was carried out based on the memorandum of understanding (MOU) the SDF concluded with the U.S. military in October last year. The ASDF’s refueling of U.S. warplanes leads to the implementation of the unconstitutional right of collective self-defense.

Mid-air refueling is a military operation which enables warplanes’ long-range attacks. As Japan continues such practice exercises, neighboring countries might be concerned that Japan is building up the military strength to be ready to attack them again, thus leading to an increase in military tension in the region.

The NATO guidelines were applied in the MOU for the SDF refueling activities. This could make it possible for the SDF to provide the same military support for NATO member troops. Japan’s further involvement in the U.S. global military strategy must be stopped.

The MOU was concluded based on the Japan-U.S. Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA). Since its establishment in 1996, the agreement has been adversely revised many times. It has also expanded areas it applies to, ranging from participating in joint military exercises and in U.N. peacekeeping operations to responding to emergency situations in areas surrounding Japan as well as emergency situations in Japan. Now with the conclusion of the MOU, the SDF can refuel U.S. aircraft in the air in all cases set by the ACSA.

The Japanese government had never made public the conclusion of MOU and the joint exercise conducted by the SDF and the U.S. forces. They were only discovered in information released by the U.S. military. It is grave that the Japanese Defense Ministry is hiding these facts that pave the way for the SDF’s military support for NATO countries.

The MOU must be immediately scrapped, and the move for the unification of Japan-U.S. armed forces must be stopped.