Japanese ground troops crossed the Kuwaiti border into Iraq on Sunday, launching the historic first deployment of the Self-Defence Forces to a combat zone since World War II, unit commander Colonel Yasushi Kiyota announced.
”They crossed the border,” he said at about 8.20am local time, speaking in Japanese by telephone to reporters held back about 300m behind the crossing point.
Kiyota had given the marching orders for a 25-vehicle convoy and an estimated 50-odd soldiers to go through the desert gateway used by coalition forces to enter Iraq.
”Let’s do the work that makes history,” he told the troops. ”Do your work as usual.”
The armoured personnel carriers, large and small trucks all carrying stickers of the Japanese flag drove off on the 300km journey to the southern Iraqi town of Samawa where they will be based.
The Japanese carried rifles and pistols and one vehicle was mounted with a machine gun.
Two United States army vehicles, also mounted with machine guns, protected the convoy emblazoned with the words ”Japan” in English and Arabic.
”I wished the troops good luck,” Kiyota told reporters before crossing into Iraq. But he refused to reveal the exact number of soldiers involved, believed to be about 50.
The colonel added that he had spoken by telephone to his family, including his son, before setting off.
At 5am, just before dawn broke, the Japanese convoy had moved off from Camp Virginia, a US military outpost about 70km northwest of Kuwait City.
They headed north through the barren sands about 100km to the border town of Navistar, which is off-limits to civilians. — Sapa-AFP