Around 2004, during Japan’s Self-Defense Forces deployment for Iraq reconstruction support, then-Defense Agency Director-General Shigeru Ishiba scheduled three on-site inspections to encourage troops stationed in Samawah, Iraq, but canceled each one at the last minute.
Self-Defense Forces personnel had coordinated preparations with U.S. forces and others.
This action led to criticism for demoralizing the troops, with accusations of him being “afraid for his own life” and a “betrayer.”
