Japan pulls out of America’s mission in Gulf region

Japan has announced its decision not to involved in the America’s plans for security in the Gulf region.Welcoming Japan’s decision regarding United States-led naval mission in the Gulf, Iranian President, Hassan Rouhani, confirmed that Japan was opting out of US-led naval mission in Gulf.”Japan is sending a surveillance vessel but not to the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.Tensions have escalated between Washington and Tehran since US President Donald Trump’s decision last year to withdraw from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with the world powers.US ally Japan maintains friendly ties with Iran and is looking to launch its own naval operation to secure shipping in the region.It was reported that subsequent US sanctions, which block Iran from selling crude oil abroad, have crippled its economy, prompting Tehran to gradually reduce its commitment to the nuclear deal.Rouhani said his discussions in Japan included ways of “breaking” the US sanctions.”On breaking the sanctions, the Japanese had a new proposal and we also had a new proposal and we discussed this and it was decided to continue the consultations between the two countries on this issue,” Rouhani said, without giving details.Following his meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Rouhani tweeted on Friday: “I welcome any effort that could boost economic exchanges, especially in the energy sector, and increase oil exports.”The planned Japanese operation is set to cover high seas in the Gulf of Oman, the northern Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden, but not the Strait of Hormuz.A European operation to ensure safe shipping in the Gulf will get underway next month when a French warship starts patrolling there. The French government has pushed for a European security alternative after ruling out taking part in the US-led mission.