Japanese Defense Minister Kōizumi (left) and U.S. Secretary of Defense Esper [AFP=Yonhap News] 

While the United States has reportedly asked Japan to participate in a joint statement appealing for "freedom of navigation" in the Strait of Hormuz, the proposal was initially made by the United Kingdom, not the U.S., the Asahi Shimbun reported on the 19th.

Previously, on the 15th, U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper reportedly spoke with Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and requested support for a "maritime task force" for safe passage in the Strait of Hormuz and a joint statement to be announced soon.

According to multiple Japanese government officials, discussions on multilateral cooperation related to the conflict with Iran, including a joint statement on Hormuz, began at the proposal of the United Kingdom.

There was an informal proposal from the UK to issue a joint statement in the names of relevant countries such as the European Union (EU), Australia, and Japan, emphasizing the importance of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

Asahi reported that the United States was not initially included in the scope of countries to whom the joint statement proposal was to be made.

In other words, while the U.S. was the first to request Japan's support for the joint statement, it actually originated from a UK proposal.

A Japanese government official told Asahi that it appeared the plan was to "first prepare a draft among relevant countries like the UK, and then present it to the U.S."

Asahi Shimbun reported that during the subsequent discussion process, expressions like "Coalition" or "Task Force" emerged in relation to multilateral cooperation.

Secretary Esper reportedly did not request the dispatch of the Self-Defense Forces to the Strait of Hormuz in his phone call with Defense Minister Koizumi on the 15th.

Within the Japanese government, there were opinions that "participation would be positive for a joint statement related to stability and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz," according to government officials.

However, there was no active discussion about the joint statement on Hormuz in the phone call on the 16th between Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Amidst this, Asahi reported that within the Japanese government, there were laments that it was difficult to grasp the intentions of U.S. President Donald Trump, whose statements regarding requests for troop deployment to the Strait of Hormuz were changing daily.

President Trump has repeatedly and strongly demanded that allies, including NATO, South Korea, and Japan, dispatch warships to the Strait of Hormuz.

However, on the 17th (local time), he expressed disappointment and anger towards allies, stating that further support was no longer needed.

The Japanese government is reportedly seeing confusion within the U.S. government regarding the request for naval vessel dispatch and is reportedly reviewing Japan's response measures while analyzing information related to multilateral cooperation.

One Japanese government official confided to Asahi, "I don't know what the United States wants."