Defense Agency chief Yoshinori Ono told a Diet session Wednesday that relocating the headquarters of a U.S. military unit to Japan would not violate the Japan-U.S. security treaty -- even if the range of the unit's activity goes beyond the Far East.
The security treaty stipulates that the U.S. military forces can use military facilities in Japan to contribute to the security of Japan and the maintenance of peace and security in the Far East.
According to a 1960 unified government's view, "the Far East" defined in the security treaty refers to areas north of the Philippines, Japan and its surrounding areas, including South Korea and Taiwan.