The government said Tuesday it will use 891.94 million yen from its reserve funds for fiscal 2003 to finance Self-Defense Forces activities in Iraq.
Of the sum, about 150 million yen is for the advance Ground Self-Defense Force team that received dispatch orders Friday to prepare for the deployment of core units, according to Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki.
The GSDF advance unit of roughly 30 members will be given the budget to cover special troop allowances as well as travel and communications costs, according to government officials.
The unit is expected to depart later this week for the southern Iraq city of Samawah via Kuwait to check local security.
The remaining 740 million yen will be used for deploying the Air Self-Defense Force's main units, which also received deployment orders Friday, Tanigaki said.
The funds will mainly cover the fuel expenses of three C-130 cargo planes that will help transport goods for the U.S.-led occupation forces in Iraq.
The government has allocated 24.2 billion yen from the reserve funds for fiscal 2003 for the SDF to prepare for reconstruction duties in Iraq.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.