Japan's Defense Agency Director General Nukaga Fukushiro held talks with U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on April 23 at the U.S. Department of Defense and accepted the U.S. request that Japan pay 6.09 billion dollars, or 706.4 billion yen that accounts for 59 percent of 10.27 billion dollars, or 1.19 trillion yen, the cost that the U.S. claimed necessary for the relocation of some U.S. Marine Corps units from Okinawa to Guam.
Japan and the United States will hold a security consultative meeting (2+2) early in May when the foreign ministers and defense ministers will finalize the plan on the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan.
Japanese Communist Party Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi at the press conference on April 24 criticized the Japan-U.S. agreement on the issue of funding the relocation of U.S. Marines to Guam as follows:
"At no time in history has Japan ever used tax money to help construct new foreign military bases on foreign territory. There's no such international precedent, either. The United States should pay all costs of relocation of U.S. troops."
Criticizing the Japanese government and the ruling parties for arguing that funding the relocation cost is necessary in order to reduce Okinawa's burdens from U.S. military bases, Ichida said:
"The aim of relocating U.S. Marine Corps units to Guam is not to reduce Okinawa's burdens. They are moving to Guam because the U.S. wants to effectively implement its world strategy in this region by linking up their units/facilities in Guam, Hawaii, and Okinawa.
They say that the Marine Corps will return to Okinawa whenever it is necessary to do so. The planned relocation has nothing to do with reducing Okinawa's burdens."
- Akahata, April 25, 2006
Japanese people did not agree to pay for moving U.S. Marines to Guam
Unconvincing bill
The government has explained nothing to the public about the Japanese people having to shoulder 500 billion yen (excluding loans) for relocating the U.S. Marine Corps from Okinawa to Guam and more than 2 trillion yen for all U.S. military realignments. To date, the Japan-U.S. talks on U.S. military relocation have not been made public, and the latest "agreement" was also made behind closed doors. The "agreement" is by no means between the United States and the Japanese people.
The 10.27 billion dollars that the United States says is necessary for relocating U.S. Marines to Guam is an amount which "Japan cannot verify" (a Defense Agency official). It is highly possible that the United States will further increase the amount in the future.
The 59 percent share of burden was imposed on Japan as a result of Japan succumbing to U.S. requests. Japan was initially asked to pay 30 percent of the cost.
The "loan" portion will be subject to repayment in 50 years without interest. There is no guarantee that the fund will be repaid by the United States. Many examples show that the United States did not pay judicial compensation for crimes committed by U.S. military personnel, with the Japanese government paying instead.
No legal basis
Since FY 1979, Japan has paid more than 2 trillion yen for the construction of facilities inside U.S. military bases in Japan from Japan's "sympathy" budget for the stationing of U.S. forces in Japan. This payment alone makes Japan an extraordinary payer among all U.S. allies.
Japan's payment from the "sympathy" budget has no legal basis under the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, and it has therefore been made by a stretched interpretation of the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA).
However, there is no precedent for having Japan or any other country use money from the government coffer to pay for building a military base in Guam, which is U.S. territory. The Japanese government has repeatedly acknowledged that the payment lacks legal basis. Foreign Ministry North American Affairs Bureau Director Kawai Chikao stated, "SOFA is not applicable."
Strengthening Marine Corps
Defense Agency Director-General Nukaga Fukushiro has repeated the explanation that Japan's payment for the Guam relocation helps reduce burdens on Okinawa.
However, the October 2005 interim report on U.S. military "transformation and realignment" stated that the relocation to Guam is part of measures to strengthen U.S. "Marine Corps crisis response capabilities." The U.S. realignment plan aims to make Guam a new foothold for the U.S. Marine Corps by relocating troops from Okinawa, and building large training and port facilities. Personnel to be relocated to Guam will be mainly of the command staff, and combat units will remain in Okinawa.
It is also highly probable that the number of personnel to be relocated, 8,000 Marines and 9,000 family members, is an overestimate.
The plan to construct a new state-of-the-art military base with V-shaped runways on the shoreline of Nago City clearly shows that the United States is imposing additional burdens on Okinawa.
- Akahata, April 25, 2006
