ABSTRACT
The Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) has engaged in various types of new mission overseas since 1992, stretching globally from Haiti, to Golan Heights, Iraq, South Sudan, and the Gulf of Aden. More than 20,000 personnel have engaged in peacekeeping, international disaster relief, humanitarian assistance, maritime refueling, and antipiracy operations in the last 20 years. In particular, the operational tempo has dramatically increased since the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States in 2001. The operational history of the JSDF has shifted into a new phase of “active international cooperation” after a half-century, inactive, domestic-focused phase.
