The House of Representatives approved a bill Tuesday to revise the Self-Defense Forces Law to enable the Defense Agency chief, in an emergency, to order a missile interception without waiting for approval from the prime minister and the Cabinet.
The bill, approved by the chamber's Security Committee earlier Tuesday, cleared the full Lower House with a majority vote by the ruling coalition despite resistance by the Democratic Party of Japan, which demanded that Diet approval be required after such an action is initiated.
The bill would authorize the Defense Agency chief to order an intercept with the consent of the prime minister and the Cabinet in the event Japan detected signs of an imminent missile attack.