Okinawa Governor Gen Ohshiro said the plan to move about 9,000 US Marines off the island is an important safeguard against a repeat of the crimes that have shaken the prefecture, in an interview with the Mainichi Shimbun on October 27.
Ohshiro, who took office on September 30, said he already feels the weight of the US military presence. "I have the sense that 60 to 70 percent of my duties are taken up by base issues," he said.
He won the September gubernatorial election with support from Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's camp, returning a conservative governor to Okinawa for the first time in 12 years.
A Marine charged with robbery and murder
The interview followed the arrest and indictment of a US Marine on suspicion of robbery and murder. Asked whether the troop transfer agreed by the Japanese and US governments should be pushed as a way to prevent further crimes, Ohshiro said the numbers matter.
“If the absolute number of Marines falls, the possibility of incidents and accidents will decline.”Gen Ohshiro, Okinawa governor
He said carrying out the Guam relocation set out in the 2006 Japan-US roadmap is "extremely important," and noted that the two governments agreed in 2012 to move about 9,000 Marines outside Japan, including to Guam.
Only about 100 Marines have moved so far. Ohshiro said the transfer to Guam has begun, but no concrete plan has been presented for moves to Hawaii or the US mainland. The prefecture has asked the Japanese government to lay out the full picture of the plan, and will keep asking, he said.
He said he would also press for steady progress through the Okinawa Policy Council, a forum he wants convened soon. The council is now set to meet on November 6.
The Mainichi Shimbun interview also covered the designation of airports and ports for joint use, the planned relocation of Naha military port to Urasoe, his pledge to double incomes, whether base issues are tied to development budgets, and the continuing restoration of Shuri Castle.