TOKYO (REUTERS) - Japan has decided to dispatch its own self-defence troops to the Strait of Hormuz area instead of joining the United States coalition to protect merchant vessels passing through key Middle Eastern waterways, the Asahi newspaper reported.

The decision is in line with a previous Japanese media report that Japan would not join its most important ally in the security mission due to its close economic ties with Iran, a major oil producer.

Global commodity trading has been rocked in recent months by the seizure of a British tanker and a series of attacks on international merchant vessels that the US and Britain have blamed on Iran. Teheran denies involvement.