Japan will help train fledgling Iraqi police forces jointly with Germany and France, particularly in the area of criminal investigations, and will dispatch a team of experts to Germany in January.
According to the plan disclosed Wednesday by former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto, the joint project was proposed by French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder when Hashimoto met with them separately in Paris and Berlin earlier this month.
Hashimoto visited Britain, France and Germany from Dec. 14 to 18 as Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's special envoy to explain Japan's position on the reconstruction of Iraq.