Japan resumes construction work for US air base relocation

The Japanese government resumed construction work at the new site of a key US air base within Okinawa Prefecture on Tuesday after suspending work in March amid a row with the local government over the base's relocation.

The move came after Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga on Monday rescinded an action aimed at blocking the relocation work following his recent defeat in a lawsuit filed by the central government over the plan to relocate the US Marine Corps' Air Station Futenma, Kyodo news agency reported. 

But tension remains between Tokyo and Okinawa, with Onaga calling for consultation between the central and local governments prior to the resumption of the relocation work and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga rejecting the idea during their talks Tuesday in Tokyo. 

After decades of hosting the bulk of US military facilities in Japan, many people in Okinawa want the Futenma base to be relocated outside the prefecture. 

They are frustrated with noise, crime and accidents linked to the US bases, and safety concerns were again sparked in the wake of a Dec. 13 crash-landing of a U.S. Marines Osprey aircraft off Nago.

The central government has maintained that the current relocation plan, crafted under an accord with the United States, is "the only solution" for removing the dangers posed by the Futenma base which is situated close to schools and homes, without undermining the perceived deterrence provided by the Japan-US alliance.

A legal fight between the central and local governments began following Onaga's revocation and it ended last week with the Supreme Court ruling against the governor's position.

Source: MENA