Kadena assembly rules out accepting Futenma base, hits Okada

NAHA, Okinawa Pref. (Kyodo) The town assembly of Kadena, Okinawa Prefecture, adopted a motion Wednesday opposing Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada's calls to move U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma's aircraft operations to the town's Kadena air base and demanding that he retract his statement.

In a unanimous vote, the Kadena assembly adopted the motion against Okada's repeated calls to consolidate the Futenma flight operations with nearby U.S. Kadena Air Base, saying it will increase the burden on the town.

The motion, which also asked for help alleviating the town's burden, will be sent to the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry and four other related bodies, according to the assembly.

The move was prompted after Okada repeatedly said he plans to negotiate the proposed consolidation, reversing the ruling Democratic Party of Japan's initial pledge to move the facility out of Okinawa.

The foreign minister said he favors consolidation because the Kadena base already has a runway, and it would take less time to relocate Futenma than the current plan under a 2006 Japan-U.S. accord to construct two runways in a V pattern in the coastal area of Nago, northern Okinawa Island, by 2014.