Tokyo Considering Independent Middle East Naval Mission

Japan will not join a U.S.-led maritime security mission in the Middle East, reports Reuters. 

Instead, Tokyo is considering sending Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) vessels to the region on information -athering missions, government sources told the Yomiuri Shimbun (Tokyo). 

Under the proposal, Japanese ships would deploy in the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman and the Bab Al-Mandab strait, between Eritrea, Somalia and Yemen.

The Strait of Hormuz could be included if Iran...