U.S., Japan sign pact to move Marines to Guam

[unhappycamper]

U.S., Japan sign pact to move Marines to Guam
By Eric Talmadge - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Feb 17, 2009 21:20:53 EST

TOKYO — Hoping to give new momentum to a plan to rework the deployment of U.S. troops in the Pacific, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton signed an agreement Tuesday with Japan that will move 8,000 Marines off the southern Japanese island of Okinawa to the U.S. territory of Guam.

The framework of the transfer had already been agreed on in 2006, but several major points remain to be worked out, including the location of a base to replace Okinawa’s Futenma air station, a major hub for the Marines there.

Officials on both sides have agreed to relocate the operations of the base to another, less crowded part of Okinawa, but local opposition has stalled progress.

“This agreement reflects the commitment we have to modernize our military posture in the Pacific,” Clinton said. “It reinforces the core of our alliance — the mission to defend Japan against attack and to deter any attack by all necessary means.”

Japan’s Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone also hailed the agreement.


Rest of article at: http://marinecorpstimes.com/news/2009/02/ap_japan_marines_021709/%2e



uhc comment: In case you didn't know it, Guam is a US Territory --> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guam