April 28, 2010
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US Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and senior Japanese government officials have discussed the issue of relocating the US Marine Corps Futenma Air Station now in Okinawa Prefecture.
Campbell met the Foreign Ministry's North American Affairs Bureau head Kazuyoshi Umemoto and the Defense Ministry's Defense Policy Bureau chief Nobushige Takamizawa in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan's government is now finalizing its plan for the station, which is located in Ginowan city.The government is considering transferring some of the station's troops and drills to Tokunoshima, an island in Kagoshima Prefecture, about 200 kilometers north of Okinawa.
It is also considering modifying a plan agreed on by the Japanese and US governments in 2006 to build a runway in a coastal area of US Camp Schwab in Nago City in Okinawa, Japan's southernmost prefecture, to accommodate the station's functions.
On Wednesday, Japanese officials briefed Campbell on the government's efforts. The 2 sides then discussed a schedule for working-level talks and how bilateral negotiations should be carried out.
Campbell later told reporters that the 2 sides had good discussions, but declined to give details.
2010/04/28 17:14(JST)
(JST: UTC+9hrs.)
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