The Diet on Wednesday extended the counterterrorism law for a fifth year, clearing the way for Tokyo to maintain the SDF's refueling support for the U.S.-led counterterrorism campaign in the Indian Ocean for another year.
The House of Councilors passed the extension, which cleared the House of Representatives last week, in a morning plenary session.
But the length of the extension, half the previous one, signals Tokyo may scrap the Maritime Self-Defense Force mission within a year.
The special counterterrorism law, due to expire Nov. 1, was enacted in October 2001 as two-year legislation after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. The legislation was extended for two years in October 2003.
Under the law, the MSDF has pumped a total of 410,000 kiloliters, or 16.2 billion yen worth of fuel, into vessels from 11 countries as of early September, according to the Defense Agency.
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