Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi expressed readiness Monday to extend the deployment of the Self-Defense Forces in Iraq beyond the current Dec. 14 deadline to continue reconstruction assistance there, a Japanese official said.

Koizumi, however, did not mention how long the SDF troops will stay there, the official said.

Meeting with Iraqi interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi in New York, Koizumi said Japan cannot be engaged in operations that may require the use of force due to its war-renouncing Constitution, but that SDF troops have been involved in reconstruction missions in Iraq under special legislation, according to the official.

It remains difficult for Japan to engage in operations to maintain the security situation in Iraq but Japan will continue to make utmost efforts to help reconstruct the country, Koizumi was quoted as saying.

Japan has been deploying its Ground Self-Defense Force troops in the southern Iraqi city of Samawah since January for reconstruction and humanitarian missions to help rebuild local infrastructure, purify water and provide medical relief. It is the first time since World War II that Japan has sent troops to a country where fighting is taking place.

The deployment is based on the basic plan compiled under a special law introduced last year. To continue SDF reconstruction missions in Iraq, it is necessary to extend the basic plan as it is due to expire Dec. 14.

The Koizumi-Allawi talks were held on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly session.

Koizumi asked Allawi to continue to take a leadership role in successfully holding a national election scheduled for January 2005, the Japanese official said.

The election will choose a transitional national assembly, which will then select a transitional Iraqi government and draft a new constitution. Under the constitution, the Iraqi people will elect a permanent government by the end of 2005.

Koizumi also called on Allawi to make further efforts to stabilize the security situation in Iraq to facilitate international reconstruction assistance there, the official said.

Allawi thanked Japan for providing reconstruction support to Iraq and for hosting an international donors' conference in Tokyo on Oct. 13-14 for assistance to the country, he said.

Allawi also said he appreciates having the SDF troops in Iraq, which have been cooperating in reconstruction efforts as part of the U.N.-authorized multinational force formed after the transfer of sovereignty to the Iraqi interim government from the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority, according to the Japanese official.

Source: Agencies