The Defense Ministry admitted Monday that some Maritime Self-Defense Force officers were aware of an underreporting "mistake" concerning the amount of fuel Japan provided to the U.S. in 2003 but failed to report it to their seniors for more than four years.
The ministry called the mishap "a grave problem in civilian control" over the Self-Defense Forces and in the evening launched an investigation committee.
The fresh scandal for the Defense Ministry is expected to make enactment of a bill to extend the controversial MSDF Indian Ocean mission more difficult for the ruling bloc, as the emboldened opposition will now be in a position to put up greater resistance to prolong deliberations during the current Diet session.