The decision was made because the security situation in the African nation remains uncertain and because it is difficult for the SDF to dispatch more troops in addition to those who have already been deployed in Iraq to assist in reconstruction work there, the sources said.

Japan had been considering how it can contribute to the peacekeeping operations following the adoption of a U.N. Security Council resolution in March to send 10,000 peacekeepers to southern Sudan to monitor a cease-fire between the government and southern rebels.