In a bid to reduce crimes committed by U.S. military base workers, Tokyo and Washington on Monday signed a supplementary agreement to limit and clarify the definition of the civilian component protected under the Status of Forces Agreement.
The agreement came almost nine months after a woman was allegedly raped and killed by a contract worker at the U.S. Kadena Air Base in Okinawa Prefecture.
"The agreement will help prevent the recurrences of incidents and accidents involving the U.S. civilian component," Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said at the signing ceremony, thanking U.S. Ambassador Caroline Kennedy, who is scheduled to leave Japan on Wednesday, for her efforts to strengthen the Japan-U.S. alliance.