Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida promised on Friday to discipline military personnel for improperly handling classified material and apologise, Reuters reported. The report said the scandal could undermine previous efforts by Japan to win the trust of the United States and other allies.
According to a report by Kyodo News Agency, the Ministry of Defense said on the 12th that, the agency has disciplined 218 members of the self-defense forces and senior officials in cases involving improper handling of classified information and failure to pay for food and drink in the base cafeteria. The report also said the individuals were also charged with Abuse of authority.
In addition, since the scandal mainly involves the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, the current Chief of Staff, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force has been confirmed on the 19 March to resign. Kyodo news agency also said, “The scale of the punishment of the largest in history, the organizations at the same time by the head of the punishment is extremely rare.”.
Kishida apologised after the defence ministry punished 218 people for mishandling classified information, foreign media said
According to Reuters, in response to the incident, “I must apologise for the concerns of the Defence Ministry and the self-defence forces for the public,” said Fumio Kishida, the Japanese Prime Minister, who was in Washington for the NATO summit
In addition, Kyodo news agency reported that Minoru Kihara, Japan’s defense minister, apologized on the 12th at a press conference after a cabinet meeting, saying: “It has betrayed the trust of the nation and should never happen.” But he denied resigning, it said it would voluntarily refund the Defence Minister’s salary for a month.
The report said that in order to“Work more closely with the United States and other Western countries, including the sharing of intelligence,” Japan promised to handle classified material more carefully. Doubts about Japan’s ability to do this could hamper such co-operation.
Japanese “Asahi Shimbun”, “The Daily News” and other media reported on the 10th had warned that the Ministry of Defense Plan in this week, disciplinary action was taken against approximately 200 persons involved in multiple cases involving the illegal handling of classified information. Japanese media said the frequent scandals have shaken people’s trust in the self-defense forces. As the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s top official, the current Chief of Staff, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force may resign.
Previous reports said divers in the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force would receive different allowances depending on their depth, up to about 10,000 yen an hour (10,000 yen) . The violations were detected during regular inspections in September 2022. The Asahi Shimbun reports that illegal payments to many divers may have become routine, totalling up to Y1 zero. The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force has also been the subject of several other scandals. On some of the destroyers in the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, personnel not qualified to handle “Certain secrets” had access to “Certain secrets” while on duty in the “Combat Command Centre”.
A string of scandals has left the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force “Scarred” and there are even internal voices calling for a complete “Break-up” of the existing system and a fresh start, Kyodo News Agency said Thursday. On Japanese social networks, too, there has been a flurry of criticism of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force scandals. One netizen commented, “This has not only shaken the authority of the self-defense forces, but also disappointed the nation.”.