Japan may sell explosives to Ukraine despite ban - Reuters
Japan and the United States are looking for ways to circumvent the ban on the export of Japanese lethal goods. The United States wants to buy TNT from Japan for 155-mm shells, which it will then supply to Ukraine.
This was reported by the Reuters, іnforms Censor.NЕТ.
The publication reminds that export regulations prohibit Japanese companies from selling lethal items abroad. Therefore, any deliveries would test Japan's willingness to help Kyiv.
But Tokyo and Washington seem to have found a workaround. "The United States has a way to buy explosives from Japan," said a source with knowledge of discussions on the matter in Japan, speaking on condition of anonymity.
According to another source, the Japanese government has informed the US government that it will allow the sale of industrial TNT, as this explosive is not only for military purposes.
The U.S. wants to connect a Japanese company to the TNT supply chain to deliver the explosives to U.S. Army-owned military plants, which will pack them into 155-mm shell casings, the source added.
The US State Department did not directly answer Reuters' question about whether the US plans to buy TNT from Japan. He said that Washington is working with allies and partners "to provide Ukraine with the support it needs" to defend itself. Japan, he added, "has demonstrated leadership in supporting Ukraine's defense."
