Abe to make 5-day trip to Mideast as Japan orders naval dispatch

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Fri, 10 Jan 2020 - 11:30 GMT

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Fri, 10 Jan 2020 - 11:30 GMT

File- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (not pictured) deliver joint statements to the media at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium July 6, 2017. REUTERS/Eric Vidal

File- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (not pictured) deliver joint statements to the media at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium July 6, 2017. REUTERS/Eric Vidal

TOKYO - 10 January 2020: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will make a five-day trip from Saturday to the Middle East, the Japanese government said Friday, as it ordered the Maritime Self-Defense Force to dispatch a destroyer and patrol planes to the region on an information-gathering mission, Kyodo News Agency reported.

Seeking to help stabilize the region amid simmering tensions between Iran and the United States, Abe plans to go to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman for talks with their leaders, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said at a press conference.

The government had weighed the option of canceling the trip, but Abe decided to go ahead with it as U.S. President Donald Trump backed away from further military action against Iran, leading to an easing of tensions between the longtime foes.

Abe will "exchange views with (the leaders of) the three countries, which play important roles in easing tensions and stabilizing the situation in the region," Suga, the top government spokesman, said.

"He plans to seek cooperation on ensuring stable energy supplies and safe navigation," he said.

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