Japan defense minister visits SDF relief team in PHl

From the Philippine News Agency (Dec 8): Japan defense minister visits SDF relief team in PHl

Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera on Sunday visited Self-Defense Forces personnel engaged in relief activities in Tacloban City, which was hard hit by Super typhoon Yolanda (international name Haiyan) a month earlier on Leyte Island, central Philippines.

"The SDF has acquired various types of knowledge in the Great East Japan Earthquake. This deployment is a key test to make use of it," Onodera told senior SDF officers.

During a visit to an area where the SDF is helping to control epidemics, Onodera told reporters, "The damage causes me heartache. The government will consider the shape of medium for long-term assistance."

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