Aug 24 04:52 AM US/Eastern
TOKYO, Aug. 24 (AP) - (Kyodo) — Prime Minister Naoto Kan and the head of the U.S. military Pacific Command, Adm. Robert Willard, agreed Tuesday to work closely on the planned relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma airbase in Okinawa Prefecture, the Foreign Ministry said.
Kan told Willard at the premier's office that Japan needs continued cooperation from the United States to ease the burden on the people of Okinawa of hosting the bulk of U.S. forces in Japan, the ministry said.
Kan said making meaningful burden reduction efforts for the southwestern Japanese prefecture will be crucial to winning understanding on relocation within the prefecture, agreed by the two countries in May.
Japan and the United States have agreed to transfer the heliport functions of the Futenma Air Station, located in a crowded residential area of Ginowan, to the less populated Henoko district in Nago.
But strong opposition remains among many people in the prefecture partly because Kan's predecessor Yukio Hatoyama last year promised to move the air station out of the island prefecture.
Kan and Willard also agreed that the long-standing security alliance between the two countries is essential for ensuring stability and prosperity in Japan and the surrounding region.
Willard, who heads the Hawaii-based command overseeing all U.S. military operations in the Asia-Pacific region, also paid a courtesy call on Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada.
Despite some difficulties over the planned Futenma relocation, Willard told Okada at the start of their talks, "All in all, the U.S.-Japan relationship is as strong as ever."
Among other topics, Kan and Okada separately discussed with Willard regional security issues, including those related to North Korea, according to the ministry.
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