June 29, 2010

Prime Minister Kan Naoto promised to “earnestly work for the implementation” of the Japan-U.S. agreement on the relocation of the U.S. Futenma base in Okinawa at a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama in Toronto on June 27.

Kan’s remarks in his first summit with the U.S. leader show that he has committed himself to the construction of a new U.S. base at the Henoko district of Okinawa’s Nago City as an alternative to the Futenma base, which his predecessor Hatoyama Yukio once promised to move out of the prefecture or out of Japan.

Referring to the 50th anniversary of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, Kan said that the bilateral alliance has played “an indispensable role as the cornerstone of peace in the Asia Pacific region,” adding that Japan is proud to have contributed to the peace and stability in the region.
- Akahata, June 29, 2010