Daily Yomiuri On-LineU.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage on Monday hailed Japan's dispatch of Self-Defense Forces personnel to Iraq to help reconstruct the country as a sign of Japan's growing global leadership.

Speaking at the Japan National Press Club in Hibiya, Tokyo, Armitage praised Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's "remarkable vision" in making the decision. Koizumi "set a new benchmark, not just in the dispatch...but also in redefining Japan's role in the world," he said. ...

Concern both in and outside Japan over Japan's greater role in international affairs are "ghosts of the past," he said, adding, "I see that debate within Japan about changing the Constitution is now picking up speed without changing the unique character of this country."