Japan's defense chief vows to deal sincerely with fishermen compensation claims after U.S. jet dumps tanks in lake
Source: Xinhua   2018-02-24 18:50:30

TOKYO, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera on Saturday said the government would sincerely consider a request for compensation from local fishermen whose businesses were adversely affected by the dumping of two fuel tanks into a lake by a U.S. jet fighter.

"We take very seriously that the fishermen have been forced to halt operations. We will deal sincerely and appropriately with compensation," Onodera was quoted as saying in a meeting with Aomori Gov. Shingo Mimura in Misawa.

"We have caused trouble to people in the town of Tohoku and Aomori Prefecture," Onodera also said.

Following the talks, Mimura, for his part, told a press briefing on the matter that, "The defense minister promised compensation faithfully. Now we want the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) to make sure they remove the tanks."

The incident occurred on Tuesday and involved an F-16 fighter jet based at the Misawa Air Base in the northeastern prefecture of Aomori jettisoning both of its external fuel tanks into nearby Lake Ogawara after the jet experienced an engine fire upon taking off.

As a result of the tanks being dumped, the Lake Ogawara fishery association decided to completely halt fishing in the lake until the fuel oil is retrieved. There were around 10 fishing vessels in the vicinity when the jet dumped its tanks, the government and local officials said.

According to Japan's public broadcaster NHK, the Lake Ogawara fishery association has estimated that the fishermen are losing around 28,000 U.S. dollar a day, due to the incident.

Along with freshwater clams, the lake is rich in smelt, and whitebait are in season at this time of year, the association said.

Masataka Hamada, the head of the association, described the situation as being extremely "regrettable," and said that the local fishermen will seek compensation through discussions with local authorities.

Parts of the tanks have been recovered by an MSDF unit on Saturday and removed from the bottom of the lake from a depth of around 10 meters, local media reported.

Tensions have been growing in Japan recently, particularly in Japan's southernmost prefecture of Okinawa due to a series of U.S. military aircraft-linked accidents and mishaps, causing anti-U.S. sentiment to rise.

In January alone, three helicopters based at the controversial U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa made emergency "off base" landings, sparking local and national indignation and fear.

A month earlier, a window fell off a CH-53E large transport helicopter and fell on the grounds of an elementary school just meters from where more than 50 children were taking physical education classes.

Following his inspection of the lake on Saturday, Onodera attended a ceremony at the Misawa base to mark the first deployment by Japan of an F-35 stealth fighter jet.

In a speech to mark the jet's deployment, the defense minister said the jet was highly capable.

"The F35A has a high stealth capability and is capable of performing various missions such as information gathering and warning and surveillance activity," Onodera said.

Japan's Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF) will deploy an additional nine F-35As at the base in fiscal 2018 from April, ministry sources said.

Some military and constitutional analysts have, however, highlighted the fact that the F35A, The Pentagon's most expensive weapons system in history, being deployed here raises questions about the constitutionality of Japan maintaining such "offensive" weapons systems.

This is as Japan's "defense only" supreme law decrees that "land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained."

Editor: Zhou Xin
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Japan's defense chief vows to deal sincerely with fishermen compensation claims after U.S. jet dumps tanks in lake

Source: Xinhua 2018-02-24 18:50:30
[Editor: huaxia]

TOKYO, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera on Saturday said the government would sincerely consider a request for compensation from local fishermen whose businesses were adversely affected by the dumping of two fuel tanks into a lake by a U.S. jet fighter.

"We take very seriously that the fishermen have been forced to halt operations. We will deal sincerely and appropriately with compensation," Onodera was quoted as saying in a meeting with Aomori Gov. Shingo Mimura in Misawa.

"We have caused trouble to people in the town of Tohoku and Aomori Prefecture," Onodera also said.

Following the talks, Mimura, for his part, told a press briefing on the matter that, "The defense minister promised compensation faithfully. Now we want the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) to make sure they remove the tanks."

The incident occurred on Tuesday and involved an F-16 fighter jet based at the Misawa Air Base in the northeastern prefecture of Aomori jettisoning both of its external fuel tanks into nearby Lake Ogawara after the jet experienced an engine fire upon taking off.

As a result of the tanks being dumped, the Lake Ogawara fishery association decided to completely halt fishing in the lake until the fuel oil is retrieved. There were around 10 fishing vessels in the vicinity when the jet dumped its tanks, the government and local officials said.

According to Japan's public broadcaster NHK, the Lake Ogawara fishery association has estimated that the fishermen are losing around 28,000 U.S. dollar a day, due to the incident.

Along with freshwater clams, the lake is rich in smelt, and whitebait are in season at this time of year, the association said.

Masataka Hamada, the head of the association, described the situation as being extremely "regrettable," and said that the local fishermen will seek compensation through discussions with local authorities.

Parts of the tanks have been recovered by an MSDF unit on Saturday and removed from the bottom of the lake from a depth of around 10 meters, local media reported.

Tensions have been growing in Japan recently, particularly in Japan's southernmost prefecture of Okinawa due to a series of U.S. military aircraft-linked accidents and mishaps, causing anti-U.S. sentiment to rise.

In January alone, three helicopters based at the controversial U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa made emergency "off base" landings, sparking local and national indignation and fear.

A month earlier, a window fell off a CH-53E large transport helicopter and fell on the grounds of an elementary school just meters from where more than 50 children were taking physical education classes.

Following his inspection of the lake on Saturday, Onodera attended a ceremony at the Misawa base to mark the first deployment by Japan of an F-35 stealth fighter jet.

In a speech to mark the jet's deployment, the defense minister said the jet was highly capable.

"The F35A has a high stealth capability and is capable of performing various missions such as information gathering and warning and surveillance activity," Onodera said.

Japan's Air Self-Defense Force (ASDF) will deploy an additional nine F-35As at the base in fiscal 2018 from April, ministry sources said.

Some military and constitutional analysts have, however, highlighted the fact that the F35A, The Pentagon's most expensive weapons system in history, being deployed here raises questions about the constitutionality of Japan maintaining such "offensive" weapons systems.

This is as Japan's "defense only" supreme law decrees that "land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained."

[Editor: huaxia]
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