Okinawa rejects US troop realignment plan

Okinawa's governor told Japan's central government Monday that a plan to build a US heliport on the southern island as part of a realignment of the American military presence there was unacceptable.

The heliport plan was part of a deal struck over the weekend to close the unpopular Futenma Marine Corps Air Station on Okinawa and move its functions to another base on the island.

The plan "completely disagrees with the prefecture's ideas. It is absolutely not acceptable to Okinawa," Governor Keiichi Inamine said after meeting Defence Facilities Administration Agency chief Iwao Kitahara.

Japan and the United States reached a broad agreement on strengthening military co-operation, reducing the number of US Marines in Okinawa and giving Tokyo greater responsibility for security in the Pacific.

Under the accord, 7,000 US Marines will leave strategically located Okinawa for the US Pacific territory of Guam, a move that is expected to take six years. Japan will work with the US Government to examine how it can help facilitate the move to Guam.

There are currently 14,460 Marines in Japan, the largest Marine contingent based overseas. Nearly all are located on Okinawa, where residents have expressed a strong desire for a rapid reduction in US forces.

Inamine welcomed the cut in troop numbers, but balked at the plan to relocate the Futenma base in the crowded southern part of Okinawa to Camp Schwab in the north. He said many Okinawans want Futenma to be removed altogether because of safety and environmental concerns. Many Okinawans oppose any new US military construction on the island.

"We do not believe the latest relocation plan can effectively resolve the issue," Inamine said.

An official from the Defence Facilities Administration Agency quoted Kitahara as saying earlier Monday that "very difficult opinions and suggestions" had been received.

"We'll continue our effort to show sincerity and gain understanding," the official said on condition of anonymity in accordance with agency rules.

The central government which is sensitive to the concerns of Okinawans following a series of high-profile accidents and crimes linked to US forces based on the island has the final say on the proposed move.

Okinawa, Japan's southernmost island state about 1,600 kilometres southwest of Tokyo, shoulders nearly half of about 50,000 US servicemen in Japan.

On Sunday, thousands of activists staged a rally on Okinawa to protest crimes, noise and pollution long associated with the Marine bases, and to demand that more US troops be removed.

Source: China Daily