Japan Govt Vows to Protect Nationals after Israel’s Iran Attack

The Yomiuri Shimbun
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said Friday that the government will “take every possible measure” to protect Japanese expatriates following Israel’s latest attack on Iran.

“We will continue all-out diplomatic efforts to prevent the (Middle East) situation from worsening further,” the top government spokesman also said at a press conference.

On Friday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that the country has conducted a pre-emptive attack on Iran.

According to the Israeli military, the attack targeted Iranian facilities related to nuclear development and military installations. This was Israel’s first attack on Iran since U.S. President Donald Trump took office in January.. The previous Israeli attack on Iran occurred in October last year.

The United States has focused on talks with Iran to block Tehran’s possession of nuclear weapons while asking Israel for restraint.

At a separate press conference Friday, Japanese trade minister Yoji Muto said that the latest Israeli attack “has not affected stable energy supply in Japan at the moment.”

“The de-escalation of tensions and stabilization of the situation in the Middle East is extremely important for Japan’s national interests,” he said, adding, “We will watch the situation closely with a high sense of tension.”