Japan's Minister of Defense Shigeru Ishiba said on Sunday his country ought to resist threats from "terrorists" and stay with its plan to dispatch troops to war-torn Iraq.
"If we are intimidated and do not dispatch Self-Defense Forces, Japan will be seen as a country that backs down if threatened," Ishiba told TV Asahi.
"Stability in the region is a matter of life or death for Japan," the Minister added.
Meanwhile, two US soldiers were injured Sunday when their vehicle drove over a roadside bomb north of Baghdad, according to witnesses.
A witness said the booby trap went off at around 7:30 am (local time) near the village of Al-Aswad, eight kilometers from Bakouba. "Two soldiers were wounded and their Humvee was damaged when the bomb exploded," said a witness. (Albawaba.com)
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