Clinton accepts delay over base

Futenma friction downplayed in Okada talks; cooperation lauded

HONOLULU — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Tuesday the Obama administration feels assured of Japan’s commitment to the bilateral security alliance, even as Tokyo weighs abandoning the 2006 deal on relocating the U.S. Futenma military base.

“The Japanese government has explained the process they are pursuing to reach a resolution” on the air station in Okinawa, “and we respect that,” she said after meeting with Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada.

While Okada apparently did not promise Japan would not force Futenma off its territory entirely, he said Tokyo would determine the future of the air station by May, in a way that would have “minimal impact on the U.S.-Japan alliance.”

In a nod to Japanese sensitivities, Clinton said it was important for the U.S. to maintain its role in contributing to stability in the Asia-Pacific region while keeping in mind the need to reduce the impact of jet noise and other inconveniences to communities near U.S. bases.

The U.S. military views Futenma as critical to its strategy for defending not only Japan but also reinforcing allied forces in the event of war on the Korean Peninsula.

Upon arrival at the University of Hawaii, Clinton was met by a few dozen protesters lining the street and shouting “End the wars!” and hoisting signs demanding that the U.S. withdraw its forces from Okinawa. None attended the speech.

Clinton stressed that the first U.S. priority in the Asia-Pacific is to maintain the country-to-country alliances it already has, while exploring ways in which the United States can play a role in any new or reconfigured associations.

“The ultimate purpose of our cooperation should be to dispel suspicions that still exist as artifacts of the region’s turbulent past,” she said.

At her news conference with Okada, Clinton played down the friction over Futenma, stressing the many other areas of long-standing cooperation between the two countries. And she made clear that satisfying U.S. needs for the marine base is equally in Japan’s own interest.

“We look to our Japanese allies and friends to follow through on their commitments, including on Futenma,” she said. “I know Japan understands and agrees that our security alliance is fundamental to the future of Japan and the region.”

Okada said he and Clinton formally agreed to take the opportunity this year, which marks the 50th anniversary of the current bilateral security arrangement, to launch consultations to further deepen the alliance.

He said Japan’s foreign and defense ministers and their U.S. counterparts will issue a joint document on Jan. 19, the day the revised security treaty was signed 50 years ago.

Okada also said Japan and the United States agreed to hold a meeting of the four officials in the first half of this year for a midterm review of the alliance consultations.

He said both countries will try to reach a final conclusion by November, when Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and President Barack Obama are expected to meet on the fringes of an annual Pacific Rim summit to be held in Yokohama.

In Tokyo on Wednesday, Hatoyama called the Okada-Clinton talks “extremely meaningful,” telling reporters the two seemed to have communicated to each other well their desire to deepen the alliance.

“We should appreciate the Japanese-U.S. alliance and security (treaty) that exists to defend this country,” he said in an address to senior Self-Defense Forces officers later in the day.

On the Futenma question, Hatoyama told the reporters he would like the United States to wait and see developments on the Japanese side “because we have said we will reach a final conclusion by May.”