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Wednesday November 28, 2:14 PMJapan's upper house passes bill to end Iraq mission
The opposition has accused the government of blindly following the United States into Iraq and opposes Japan's Kuwait-based air mission which flies goods and supplies into the war-torn country. The upper house, where the opposition wrested control in July elections, voted 133 to 103 in a party-line vote to terminate the Iraq mission, which has been unpopular with the public. The bill is nearly certain to be scrapped by the more powerful lower house, in which Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda's ruling coalition holds a comfortable majority. Parliament voted before the summer election to continue the Iraq mission until July 2008. But legislation on a separate naval mission backing US-led operations in Afghanistan expired this month due to legislative deadlock. After approving the Iraq pullout, the upper house took up debate on a bill proposed by Fukuda's government to resume the naval mission, which provided fuel and other support on the Indian Ocean to coalition forces. Fukuda pushed the legislation through the lower house before visiting the US earlier this month, but the prospects of the upper house passing it remain grim. The opposition says its first priority is probing a mushrooming scandal over defence contracts. The upper house has summoned Finance Minister Fukushiro Nukaga, who was formerly defence chief, to testify on the scandal next week. Fukuda addressed the upper house Wednesday and promised to shake up the defence ministry. "A problem has occurred that damages people's confidence and that is extremely regrettable," Fukuda said. "I believe the ministry needs comprehensive reform." Prosecutors on Wednesday questioned Takemasa Moriya, formerly the top bureaucrat in the defence ministry, on allegations of accepting bribes, officials said. News reports said he was expected to be arrested. Moriya has admitted that a contractor treated him to fine dining, gifts and more than 200 golf trips but has denied giving any favours in exchange. |
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