Hatoyama faces time constraints in setting Okinawa base policy+

TOKYO, Oct. 21 Kyodo -
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama faces time constraints in drawing a conclusion on
whether to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps' Futemma Air Station within Okinawa
by 2014 as already agreed on, with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates pressing
his government to set its approach at an early date during his Japan visit
through Wednesday.

Key ministers of the Hatoyama Cabinet remain cautious about clearly indicating
the timing for setting the Futemma policy, as they tackle a difficult task of
following through on their pledge to review a 2006 bilateral accord on the U.S.
forces realignment in a way that would not irk Washington and local Okinawa
residents.
Initially, U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to Japan scheduled for Nov. 12
to 13 was thought to be the deadline for the tripartite coalition government
led by the Democratic Party of Japan to fix the Futemma policy, but Hatoyama
has recently indicated his Cabinet will make up its mind before the summer of
2010.
The premier's position, however, seems not to be necessarily shared by other
ministers.
Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada has expressed his desire to at least cement the
policy direction before the year-end, while Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa
told Gates on Wednesday Tokyo has no intention to ''waste time'' and a lengthy
review process ''would not be constructive'' for both Japan and the United
States.
The year-end looms as a crucial period because the government must draft by
that time its fiscal 2010 budget involving expenses related to the current
Japan-U.S. realignment plan.
Under the bilateral accord struck in May 2006, heliport functions of the
Futemma Air Station in a downtown residential area of Ginowan are set to move
to a less densely populated area in Nago, northern Okinawa, by 2014. The plan
involves the construction of V-shaped runways in the coastal area of the
Marines' Camp Schwab.
The realignment also covers the transfer of 8,000 Marines from Okinawa to Guam
by 2014 and Japan will co-finance projects on Guam with the United States. The
construction of infrastructure on the island is scheduled to start in the fall
of next year.
A senior Defense Ministry official expressed bewilderment when Hatoyama
indicated the Futemma decision will be made around next summer, saying the
government has to consider how it will go through the year-end budget
compilation process.
The official, who declined to be named, wondered whether it is possible to
earmark expenses necessary for the Futemma relocation as reserve funds.
On the Okinawa political calendar, there will be key elections in January and
the end of next year -- the Nago mayoral election and the Okinawa gubernatorial
election as Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima's four-year term will expire in December
2010.
Nago Mayor Yoshikazu Shimabukuro and Nakaima basically accept the current
Futemma relocation plan based on the 2006 accord. However, growing calls from
Okinawa politicians who are negative about the existing plan may affect the
upcoming polls.
The majority of Okinawa prefectural assembly members are opposed to the Futemma
transfer to Camp Schwab following the assembly election in June last year.
In the Aug. 30 House of Representatives poll this year, candidates backed by
the DPJ and its partners won in all four single-seat constituencies in Okinawa.
Moreover, the House of Councillors election is slated for next summer. Defense
Minister Kitazawa has pointed out that Hatoyama had this upper house poll in
mind when he indicated a desire to reach a conclusion on the Futemma issue
between the Nago and Okinawa gubernatorial elections.
Some analysts say if the DPJ succeeds in securing a majority in the upper
chamber, the influence of its coalition partners -- the Social Democratic Party
and the People's New Party -- will decline, making it easier for the party to
explore workable solutions to the Futemma issue.
Among the three ruling parties, the SDP is most vocal about scrapping the 2006
accord and to move the Futemma facility outside Okinawa or even outside Japan.
The SDP, which opposes the stationing of U.S. forces in Japan, insisted the
DPJ-led coalition should pledge in their coalition accord to ''move in the
direction of reexamining the realignment of the U.S. military forces in Japan
and the role of U.S. military bases in Japan so as to reduce the burden on
Okinawa residents.''
With the relocation plan put on hold, the city of Ginowan which hosts the
Futemma air base has become increasingly frustrated.
Ginowan Mayor Yoichi Iha has urged the government to realize the early closure
of the Futemma facility and the return of the military-occupied land to the
city, saying 13 years have passed since a Japan-U.S. original accord on the
return.
He also complained that local residents have long been tormented by noise
pollution and the fear of accidents following the crash in August 2004 of a
Marine helicopter at the campus of Okinawa International University in Ginowan.
==Kyodo
2009-10-21 23:48:19