A former senior Foreign Ministry official suggested in a statement submitted to the Tokyo District Court on Tuesday that Japan and the U.S. concluded a secret agreement over the cost burdens for the 1972 reversion of Okinawa.
The statement by Bunroku Yoshino, then the ministry's American Bureau chief, was compiled on behalf of plaintiffs demanding that the government disclose three documents they argue indicate the existence of the secret pact.
Yoshino, 91, is expected to testify at the court about the negotiation process for the reversion. Presiding Judge Norihiko Sugihara said Tuesday the court will seek approval from the foreign minister to summon Yoshino to testify, based on a provision of the code of civil procedure, so he can appear Dec. 1.