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Japan's government to safeguard oil routes, airlines

The Japanese government plans to provide financial aid to domestic airlines and guard commercial vessels headed for the Middle East once a US-led attack on Iraq begins, a leading Japanese daily reported yesterday.

According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, the package of emergency measures, compiled by the government, is aimed at ensuring smooth air and marine transport for the delivery of crude oil and airline passengers.

The government fears that Japanese tankers headed for the Middle East might be attacked by Islamic militants after war breaks out. It plans to use the Japan Coast Guard's patrol boats to escort tankers and other commercial vessels, the first use of the agency's patrol boats for such purposes, the report said.

The patrol boats would be authorized to open fire on hostile vessels to protect Japanese ships.

Airline passenger and cargo traffic is expected to plunge due to the increasing fears of terrorism once the war in Iraq begins. For this reason, the government is mulling providing emergency loans via the Development Bank of Japan to domestic airlines, the report said. Such loans are expected to carry a 1.5 percent interest rate and a maturity of 10 years, the report said.

The Development Bank extended a total of ¥230 billion (US$1.9 billion) in special loans to the airline industry after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the US.
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