The Ground Self-Defense Force's nation-building activity as part of a U.N. peacekeeping operation in South Sudan is likely to take a long time and face various challenges.
In mid-January, the first batch of a GSDF engineering unit will be sent to South Sudan, which became independent in July.
"People of South Sudan are paying close attention [to the GSDF on this operation] and the international community has high hopes," Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said at a mission-launching ceremony in Tokyo on Saturday.
About 240 SDF members, wearing camouflage uniforms, attended the ceremony, where flags were distributed to the unit.
A senior Defense Ministry official described the PKO in South Sudan as a "completely new activity" as it is intended to support nation-building from scratch, unlike conventional activities that center on monitoring ceasefires and postwar reconstruction. (Yomiuri)
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