Central govt, Okinawa remain apart over US base relocation

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara visited Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki at the prefectural office in Naha, the capital of Okinawa, and explained the central government's policy of promoting the relocation of the US Marine Corps' Futenma air station, located in a heavily populated area in Ginowan in the prefecture, to the Henoko coastal district in Nago, another Okinawa city, hoping to win understanding from the prefecture side.
   
Meanwhile, Tamaki urged the central government to abandon the relocation plan, and the talks ended in a stalemate.

It was the first meeting between the two since the launch of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's administration in October. Kihara also serves as minister in charge of reducing the burden on Okinawa of hosting US military bases.

Kihara said to Tamaki that the central government will steadily advance the return of the Futenma air station site to the prefecture based on a consolidation plan for US military facilities in Okinawa and reduce the base-hosting burden on the prefecture.

Roughly 70 % of US military facilities in Japan are concentrated in the prefecture.
   
Tamaki handed to Kihara a written request for support for the promotion of Okinawa's development.
   
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Kihara referred to the fact that the Japanese Defence Ministry started full-scale reclamation work on Friday on the Oura Bay side of the Henoko relocation site, which has soft ground, and said, "We will do our best to realise the full return of the Futenma site as soon as possible."
  
Both Kihara and Tamaki attended the day's meeting wearing Okinawa's traditional "kariyushi" shirts dyed in the same "bengara" colour as the paint used in Shuri Castle in Naha, which is undergoing restoration work.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]