The top commander of the U.S. forces in Japan suggested last week that a more flexible approach by both the military and the Japanese government would help to achieve the planned relocation of a U.S. Marine Corps contingent to Guam from Okinawa by 2014.
In an interview, Lt. Gen. Edward Rice also offered reassurance that no threat to safety is posed by the aircraft carrier USS George Washington, which from August is to make Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, its forward-deployed port, becoming the first nuclear-powered flattop based in Japan.
"The government of Guam, industry partners, the U.S. military and the government of Japan are working to determine how we can think creatively about how to make this work," Rice said, referring to the marine relocation plan, a key item in a Japan-U.S. agreement on the reorganization of U.S. forces in Japan.