Satoshi Ogawa / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent
WASHINGTON--It has become almost certain that essential details of the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture will remain unresolved until at least 2011, as the Japanese and U.S. governments have basically agreed to abandon the Aug. 31 deadline they set earlier.
The two governments agreed Thursday on the outline of a report--to be released by working-level experts from both countries by the end of this month--regarding an exact location for the Futenma replacement facility and the design of its runway, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The outline calls for the forthcoming report to incorporate two plans as "feasible options" for the relocation facility: two runways in a V-shaped formation or a single runway, with the understanding that the facility will be located on the shore of the Henoko district in Nago in the prefecture, they said.
Incorporating both plans into the report means postponing a final decision on the specifics of the replacement base, which runs counter to the Tokyo-Washington agreement reached May 28 to complete "without fail" the task of specifying the location, runway design and construction method for the facility by the end of August, the sources said.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan's government sees the extension as inevitable, because finalizing the details of the relocation at this time would further alienate the Okinawa prefectural government, they said. The Okinawa government has steadfastly opposed relocating the functions of the Futenma facility within the prefecture.
The bilateral consultations among experts took place for three days through Thursday at the U.S. Defense Department, State Department and elsewhere in Washington, the sources said.
Broad agreements were reached on two points. One, the facility should be built somewhere in the seaside area of Henoko in Nago, in a method similar to what was agreed upon by Japan and the United States in 2006. Two, the facility should be built on reclaimed land.
The U.S. side reiterated its position that a V-shaped formation of two runways, conatined in the 2006 accord, was the best option.
The Japanese side, however, insisted that a single runway be included as a possible alternative in the report, the sources said. It did so in a bid to prevent Okinawa residents from feeling that a decision was being made with no consideration for their wishes, the sources said.
At the start of the latest consultations, both the Japanese and U.S. governments intended to finish compiling a number of details, but they were once again unable to avoid putting off a decision, U.S. government sources said.
According to the Japanese sources, the failure to determine details of the planned relocation has made it extremely difficult to hold a meeting of foreign and defense ministers from Tokyo and Washington, or two-plus-two talks, to formally decide on the relocation issue before the forthcoming Okinawa Prefecture gubernatorial election scheduled for Nov. 28.
Given that the Futenma problem cannot be settled in time for U.S. President Barack Obama's scheduled visit to Japan in mid-November, there are strong indications that the relocation of the air station will remain unresolved until 2011 and perhaps even later, the sources said.
Prior to the release of the report at the end of August, the two governments will hold a final round of expert consultations on the Futenma issue on Thursday and Friday in Tokyo to finalize the wording of the report and how to release it to the public, they said.
(Aug. 22, 2010)
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