Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi said Monday the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by American soldiers may be a violation of the Geneva Conventions on the treatment of prisoners of war.
Kawaguchi made the comment during a session of the House of Representatives Special Committee on Responses to Armed Attacks.
The foreign minister has expressed displeasure with the abuse of Iraqi prisoners, saying the acts were inhumane and regrettable.
Japan has conveyed its displeasure to the United States.
A series of U.S. media reports showed abuses of Iraqi prisoners at military prisons west of Baghdad, and President George W. Bush has pledged to punish the people responsible.
The Third Geneva Convention states that POWs "must at all times be protected, particularly against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity."