Japan could consider minesweeping Straight of Hormuz
Japan may consider deploying its military to mine the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil supplies, if a ceasefire is reached in the US-Israeli war against Iran.
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi hinted at the proposal while speaking on a Fuji TV program on Sunday.
“If, hypothetically speaking, there was a complete ceasefire, then things like minesweeping could come up,” Motegi said. he said.
“This is purely hypothetical, but if a ceasefire has been achieved and naval mines are an obstacle, then I think that’s something to consider.”
Japan’s military actions are limited under its post-war pacifist constitution, but 2015 security legislation allows Japan to use its Self-Defense Forces overseas if an attack, including an attack on a close security partner, threatens Japan’s existence and no other means are available to address it.
Motegi said Tokyo had no immediate plans to seek an arrangement that would allow stranded Japanese ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, adding that it was “extremely important” to create conditions that would allow all ships to pass through the narrow waterway through which one-fifth of the world’s oil shipments pass.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told Japan’s Kyodo news agency on Friday that he had spoken with Motegi about allowing Japanese-linked ships to pass through the strait.
Japan gets about 90 percent of its oil shipments through the strait, which Tehran largely closed during the war and is now in its fourth week. The increase in global oil prices has led Japan and other countries to extract oil from their reserves.
US President Donald Trump met with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Thursday, urging her to “step up” as he pressured their so-far unsuccessful allies to send warships to help open the strait.
Takaichi told reporters after the Washington summit that he informed Trump about what kind of support Japan can and cannot provide in the strait according to its own laws.
