(Provisional translation by an external company for reference purpose only)
This afternoon, I will visit the Ground Self-Defense Force’s Camp Omiya in Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture. Camp Omiya is an important site where the Chemical School under my jurisdiction, the 32nd Infantry Regiment, and the Central Nuclear Biological Chemical Weapon Defense Unit are located. The camp provides specialized education on chemical agents and other matters and responds to nuclear, biological, and chemical disasters. Today, I plan to observe training demonstrations by units and various types of equipment. On this occasion, I hope to offer encouragement to the personnel who are working with high morale on the ground. I also hope to exchange views with personnel who patrolled subway stations following the Tokyo subway sarin attack, as reinforcements sent to decontamination operations, and carried out post-decontamination washing, as well as with personnel who were injured in a hydrogen explosion before commencing water injection operations at Unit 3 of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant while serving as reconnaissance team leaders in the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake. Furthermore, I would like to meet with members of cooperating organizations who support the personnel, and as Minister of Defense, express my deep appreciation for their continued assistance and exchange candid views on issues and challenges unique to the community. I will inform families about the measures that are steadily being implemented, including measures to improve treatment of personnel and expand re-employment opportunities, and tell the families that I am fully committed to creating an environment where they can live with peace of mind and wait for the safe return of the personnel. Through these visits, I will deepen my understanding of the severe conditions facing our units. At the same time, I will make every effort, including disseminating information myself, to ensure that the Self-Defense Force personnel who work around the clock, 365 days a year, are viewed by the public as those who can be trusted and counted on.