Japan halts helping US fueling mission in Afghanistan

Japan's new government which has vowed to pursue a foreign policy independent of the US, says it will replace its refueling mission in Afghanistan with humanitarian aid.

Japan's new way of contributing to the effort in Afghanistan will be in the form of humanitarian aid, which will include training former Taliban soldiers, Japanese foreign ministry announced Friday.

According to governmental sources, the new initiative will support reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan and will be a good alternative to the Maritime Self-Defense Forces' refueling mission in the Indian Ocean, the Mainichi Daily News reported.

The legal mandate for Japan's refueling mission expires in January 2010.

Newly-appointed Japanese prime minister. Yukio Hatoyama, said earlier in September that he plans to end an Indian Ocean naval refueling mission, which is considered a US priority. He noted, "Japan wants to make a positive contribution in the field of our specialty... such as agricultural support or job training, which the Afghan people would be pleased to see."

The Japanese initiative is to provide vocational training -- mainly to former Taliban members. The mission will help pave the way to reducing poverty among the former militants as many young men join the Taliban movement for money. Training will be provided for as many former Taliban members as possible and the Japanese Foreign Ministry is considering offering salaries during the training program, the cost of which will be covered by the Japanese government.

Japan's new Prime Minister has vowed to pursue a more independent diplomatic course that could take Tokyo away from its top security ally, Washington.

"Japan up until now has been receptive to the United States, but I want to build a relationship in which Japan can act more proactively and tell them our opinions frankly," Hatoyama said in his first press conference in office in September.

The developments comes as Afghanistan- despite the presence of over 100,000 US-led troops-- is witnessing the highest level of violence since the 2001

A security map by the London-based International Council on Security and Development (ICOS) has recently showed a deepening security crisis with substantial Taliban activity in at least 97 percent of the war-ravaged country.

The top US general in Afghanistan, Stanley McChrystal, has expressed serious concerns over the growing Taliban insurgency in the war-ravaged country.

McChrystal, the commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, told military and defense experts Thursday at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London that the situation was serious and time was running out.

"The situation is serious and I choose that word very, very carefully."

The US invaded Afghanistan more than eight years ago to allegedly destroy insurgency and arrest militant leaders buy to no avail.