Japan orders MSDF dispatch for antipiracy mission off Somalia

Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada on Friday ordered the dispatch of Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyers on an antipiracy mission off Somalia, signifying the first policing action abroad for the country's Self-Defense Forces.

Based on the order, two destroyers -- the 4,650-ton Sazanami and 4,550-ton Samidare of the 8th Escort Division of the 4th Escort Flotilla -- are to leave their base in Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture, on Saturday afternoon.

The government's national security council and Cabinet laid the groundwork for the order earlier on Friday by deciding on the dispatch to the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden under the maritime police action provision of the Self-Defense Forces Law.

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