US to pull 9,000 Marines out of Japan
JAPAN: The United States said Friday it would pull 9,000 Marines out
of Japan as it seeks to ease a long-running standoff over the future of
its huge military presence in one of its top Asian allies.
The redeployment will see the troops sent to Guam, Hawaii and
Australia. Withdrawing troops was originally part of plans to move a
busy US airbase on Okinawa to another area of the southern island chain
but US officials decided to separate the two issues due to ongoing
opposition to the base relocation.
In a joint statement issued in Washington and Tokyo, the two sides
said they remained committed to move the Futenma base from its present
urban site to a coastal spot. The relocation is being heavily resisted
among many locals, who want to see the base moved out of Okinawa
altogether.
The two governments “reconfirmed their view that (this) remains the
only viable solution that has been identified to date”, the statement
said.
No definite timeframe was put on the redeployment, with the statement
saying only that the “relocations are to be completed as soon as
possible while ensuring operational capability throughout the process”.
AFP |