TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged on Friday to discipline military personnel who mishandled classified materials in a scandal that threatens to undermine Tokyo's efforts to convince the U.S. and other allies it can be trusted.

Japan's Self Defense Forces (SDF) has been accused of lapses in information security, fraudulently claiming additional pay for diving assignments they did not complete, and harassment of subordinates.

Senior commanders and defence ministry officials will be among those disciplined, with the head of the Maritime Self Defense Force, Admiral Ryo Sakai, to resign to take responsibility for the some incidents, local media reported.

"I must apologise for the concern that has been caused to the public by the defence ministry and the Self-Defense Forces," Kishida said in Washington DC where he attended a meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) leaders.

"I recognise that the situation is extremely severe, and in that context, I understand there is no room for error," he added.

In order to work more closely with the U.S. and other western democracies, which requires the sharing of intelligence, Japan has promised to handle classified materials more carefully. Doubts about Japan's ability to do so could hinder that collaboration.

In May, in a bid to bring it more in line with those countries, Japan passed a new security law to tighten rules on classified information handling and security vetting. It also plans legislation to bolster its cyber security defences, including a proposal to actively hunt out threats to critical infrastructure.

  - Reuters