TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Saturday attended a memorial service for members of the Self-Defense Forces who died in the line of duty, vowing to protect the country without wasting their deaths.

“In this rapidly changing security environment, I will do my best to defend Japan and its citizens and contribute to world peace and stability without wasting their precious sacrifice,” Ishiba said in a speech at the ceremony, which was attended by about 3,000 people, including the bereaved families.

In the year from September last year, a total of 32 SDF members died in the line of duty, including eight who died in the crash of a Maritime SDF helicopter in April.

A list of the 32 members, comprising 16 from the Ground SDF, 13 from the MSDF, two from the Air SDF and one from the Defense Ministry’s internal organization, was added to the cenotaph.

The total number of SDF members killed on duty since the launch in 1950 of the National Police Reserve, the predecessor of the SDF, now stands at 2,112.

JIJI Press