[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a press occasion at the Prime Minister’s Office on ending the activities of the Self-Defense Force  (SDF) Engineering Unit deployed to the United Nations mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS).

The Prime Minister said the following,
“A National Security Council meeting was held just now, where it was decided that the SDF Engineering Unit deployed in South Sudan will end its activities in and around the end of May, after it completes the operation to improve roads. The deployment of the engineering unit to UNMISS marked a milestone of five years in January 2017 and it has become the longest deployment of engineering units ever. Over the course of the deployment, the unit has made major contributions to nation-building in South Sudan, a country that has only recently become independent. These contributions include the construction of arterial roads linking various regions with the capital, Juba.
With South Sudan entering a new stage of nation building, Japan considers that its engineering activities in Juba have now come to a close. Over the past five years, the activities of the unit have produced achievements on a greater scale than ever before.
We have already explained this Japanese Government policy to South Sudan and the United Nations. President Salva Kiir Mayardit states that they highly value and appreciate the SDF for their activities.
We will continue to deploy SDF personnel to serve in the headquarters of UNMISS. Under the banner of “Proactive Contribution to Peace” we hope to continue to work with the international community and make as much contribution as we can, including through the enhancement of humanitarian assistance for the peace and development of in South Sudan.
From the 1st to the 11th rotation of the SDF Engineering Unit, a total of 3,854 personnel have been deployed from the SDF Engineering Unit to South Sudan.
I want to express my heartfelt gratitude as the Commander-in-Chief of the SDF to each of the SDF personnel who have fulfilled their duties so superbly in the scorching heat in a land far away from Japan, and to the families that sent them off to their duties.”