Japanese Defense Minister Taro Kono has ordered that a destroyer and a patrol aircraft for gathering information be sent to the Gulf of Oman and the northern area of the Arabian Sea
TOKYO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th January, 2020) Japanese Defense Minister Taro Kono has ordered that a destroyer and a patrol aircraft for gathering information be sent to the Gulf of Oman and the northern area of the Arabian Sea.
The Lockheed P-3 Orion will leave Japan on Saturday and start conducting its mission after January 20. A base in Djibouti will be its main deployment site. It will also engage in anti-pirates patrolling near Somali. Meanwhile, the destroyer will leave Japan in early February.
The operation is expected to last for one year, with 260 Japanese servicemen set to take part in it. They will be authorized to use weapons in an emergency situation only for protecting Japanese vessels.
The patrol area will not include the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf, in order not to damage the historically friendly relations with Iran.
Japan's 2020 budget envisions 4.7 billion Yen (around $43 million) for the Gulf of Oman patrolling.
