Japan, U.S. to effectively begin Futemma talks in early March: sources

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TOKYO, Feb. 23 Kyodo -
Japan and the United States will begin examining the feasibility of relocation
sites for the U.S. Marines' Futemma base in Okinawa Prefecture possibly in
early March after Japan's three ruling parties present to a government panel
their respective ideas on where to relocate the facility, Japanese government
sources said Tuesday.
U.S. forces are expected to join the Japanese Defense Ministry's assessment to
figure out if each of the selected relocation sites for the U.S. Marine Corps'
Futemma Air Station in the Okinawa city of Ginowan can actually operate as a
base, the sources said.
The idea of building a helipad on the U.S. Marine Corps' Camp Schwab in Nago,
another Okinawa city, without land reclamation to accommodate the Futemma
airfield will also be examined by the two countries, according to the sources.
The plan has been floating among lawmakers in the ruling Democratic Party of
Japan, against a 2006 bilateral deal to relocate the Futemma facility to the
coastal area off Camp Schwab.
But the DPJ will likely face a backlash from its two coalition partners -- the
Social Democratic Party and the People's New Party -- as well as residents of
areas to be selected as possible relocation sites, as the planned Japan-U.S.
assessment is expected to precede coordination among the three parties as well
as negotiations with the respective local residents.
The government has determined that its panel tasked with finding a relocation
site for the Futemma facility, which currently sits in a crowded residential
area, is unable to conduct an assessment from the operational point of view and
that it should be done between the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and the U.S.
forces.
The DPJ is also considering transferring part of drilling exercises at Futemma
to Tokuno Island and Mage Island in Kagoshima Prefecture, and the plan will
also be assessed by the countries, according to the sources.
Earlier Tuesday, SDP chief Mizuho Fukushima urged the government not to rush to
conclusions on where to relocate the Futemma facility, seeking its relocation
outside the prefecture or abroad.
With Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama resolved to reach a conclusion on the matter
by the end of May, Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa has said the government
committee studying it should come up with a relocation plan by the end of
February.
''This is a very important issue,'' Fukushima said at a news conference. ''We
should not move rashly.''
The Cabinet should give serious thought to SDP calls for moving the base
outside of the prefecture or abroad, said Fukushima, who is also consumer
affairs minister. ''Let's do our best, not (settle for) better.''
She was apparently referring to a remark made by Chief Cabinet Secretary
Hirofumi Hirano, who indicated earlier that the government may pick a
relocation site within Okinawa.
In a meeting with Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima last Saturday, Hirano said,
''We are seeking the 'best' conclusion, but we may end up drawing a 'better'
conclusion.''
Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada expressed displeasure with her remarks, telling
a news conference that his ministry needs time to negotiate with the United
States.
''We need some time for negotiations because this is not an easy question,''
Okada said, indicating it is desirable for the government panel to come up with
a candidate site as soon as possible.
Hirano told a separate news conference that the government will take
Fukushima's remarks as representing the views of the SDP. But ''because the
government has decided on the end of May (as the deadline), we will draw a
conclusion by then.''
Meanwhile, in Okinawa, major political groups in the prefectural assembly
agreed Tuesday to introduce a draft statement calling for moving the base
outside the prefecture or abroad to an assembly session on Wednesday and put it
to a vote. The statement is likely to be adopted unanimously.
The statement, if adopted, would put Nakaima in a difficult position given that
the governor has yet to change his stance, which is to accept Futemma's
relocation within the prefecture to remove the risks posed by the base as soon
as possible.
The statement describes the Futemma facility, which is located in a crowded
residential area, as ''the world's most dangerous base,'' calling for its
immediate closure and return to the Japanese side. It also calls for the
central government to give up seeking to relocate the base elsewhere in the
prefecture.
The relocation is a key part of the 2006 Japan-U.S. agreement on the
realignment of U.S. forces in Japan and linked to the transfer of about 8,000
Marines to Guam from Okinawa. Both projects are to be completed by 2014.
==Kyodo
2010-02-23 23:41:47