Japan puts off decision on US base issue with no deadline
Tokyo: Japanese Prime Minister Yukio
Hatoyama expressed hope to seek an alternative to an existing
accord reached between Japan and the United States to relocate
a key US military airfield within Japan's Okinawa Prefecture
and that he would need around "several months" more to reach a
conclusion on the issue.
The remarks were made after the government decided to put
off reaching a conclusion on the issue until next year.
But apparently in consideration of the United States, the
Japanese government will earmark expenses related to the
existing relocation plan in the budget for fiscal 2010.
"I want to do everything in my power to create a
situation in which we will seek a site that is not in Henoko,
if possible, and to settle on it," Hatoyama told reporters .
"To do that, time is needed in the order of several
months, and that's my understanding," he added.
Hatoyama did not confirm whether he sees next May as the
deadline for fixing the location site, saying only that the
deadline issue has been left up to him and his deputy, Chief
Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano.
"This is not the kind of thing you could prolong
(deciding) a government policy on casually," the prime
minister said.
Putting on hold the decision on where to relocate the
Futemma facility is part of the policy Tokyo adopted the same
day for dealing with the issue in a meeting of senior
officials of the three ruling coalition parties.
PTI