TOKYO (AP) – A partial deployment of U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam began Saturday, 12 years after Japan and the United States agreed on their withdrawal to reduce the heavy burden of the American military presence on the southern Japanese island, officials said.
The move began with 100 members of the III Marine Expeditionary Force stationed on Okinawa en route to the Pacific island to begin maintenance operations, the US Marine Corps and Japan’s Ministry of Defense said in a joint statement.
Under a plan agreed between Tokyo and Washington in April 2012, about 9,000 of the 19,000 Marines currently stationed on Okinawa are to be evacuated from Okinawa, including 4,000 of them to be sent to Guam in batches. Details, including the size and timing of the next transfer, were not immediately released.
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The Marine Corps is committed to defending Japan and meeting operational requirements to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific, and will remain present in the region “through a combination of stationing and rotating Marines in Japan, Guam and Hawaii,” the joint statement said.
Japan has paid $2.8 billion to build facilities on US bases on Guam, and the US government will pay the rest. The two governments will continue to cooperate in the development of Camp Blaz, which will serve as the main installation facility for Marines stationed in Guam.
The Marines and Japan Self Defense Forces will conduct joint training in Guam, the statement said.
Okinawa, which was under US occupation after the war until 1972, is still home to the majority of the more than 50,000 American troops stationed in Japan under a bilateral security agreement, while 70% of US military facilities are located in Okinawa, which accounts for only 0.6%. of Japan.
Many Okinawans have long complained about the heavy U.S. military presence on the island, and say Okinawa faces noise, pollution, plane crashes and crimes related to the U.S. military.
The relocation is likely to be welcomed by local residents, but how they will feel about the development is uncertain due to Japan’s rapid military build-up on the Okinawan islands as a way to counter threats from China.
The start of the transfer of Marines comes at a time of growing opposition to the US military following allegations of sexual abuse involving American soldiers.
On Thursday, an Air Force servicemember from Kadena Air Base was convicted of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a teenage girl last year, a case that sparked outrage on the island. The Naha District Court sentenced him to five years in prison.