Japan Hosts Int’l Maritime Drills against Weapons Spread

July 26, 2018

Tokyo- The Japanese government is hosting international maritime drills for preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction based on the Proliferation Security Initiative.

The PSI, proposed by the United States in 2003, is an international framework of efforts to halt the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and related materials. It is the fourth time for Japan to host PSI-based drills.

The ongoing three-day exercises, which started on Wednesday and are participated by Japan and 25 other nations including the United States and South Korea, are designed to upgrade skills, deepen mutual understanding and encourage nonmember nations to join the initiative.

On Wednesday, Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force, and U.S. and South Korean coast guards respectively searched cargo vessels assumed to be transporting weapons-related materials or equipment in waters off the Boso Peninsula in Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo.

According to Japan's Foreign Ministry, the exercises were conducted within the scope of each country's law and did not target "any specific country or situation."

The participating MSDF team contacted a mock cargo vessel through radio, seeking consent to the search of the ship.

Upon obtaining consent, 10 crew members of the MSDF's Murasame destroyer who were in bulletproof vests and armed with guns boarded the ship using a small boat, and confirmed procedures related to the search operations. Jiji Press