Succumbing to the "urging" of a United States agency, a Japan manufacturer of airbags for automotives had issued a recall of its airbags installed in over 34 million cars in the U.S. 

Takata Corp. and the U.S. Department of Transportation, said in a separate May 19 statements that the recall, believed to be the largest product recall in the country, is due to faults found in the safety of driver and passenger-side air bag inflators.

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Calling the move a "major step" for public safety, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a statement, "The Department of Transportation is taking the proactive steps necessary to ensure that defective inflators are replaced with safe ones as quickly as possible, and that the highest risks are addressed first. We will not stop our work until every air bag is replaced."

The agency has forwarded a consent order to Takata, requiring the Japanese manufacturer to cooperate in future regulatory actions that are part of its ongoing investigation into the matter. 

The NHTSA noted that Takata's airbags have been associated with six deaths worldwide.
Furthermore, the NHTSA has created the website www.SaferCar.gov/RecallsSpotlight to update the public on the progress of the investigation. 

Meanwhile, Takada said in its statement that the recall was made because of the "urging" and its "close cooperation" with the American agency. 

Takata noted that the NHTSA's consent order will consider the company's cooperation on the investigation, in regards to the possible civil penalties that it might face in the future. 

The company added that it will work with relevant automotive manufacturers to plan how the concerned vehicles can be recalled and "maximize recall completion rates." 

"We are committed to continuing to work closely with NHTSA and our automaker customers to do everything we can to advance the safety of drivers," Takata Chairman and CEO Shigehisa Takada said in the statement.