NAGO, Okinawa Pref. (Kyodo) Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa on Saturday inspected the coastal part of the U.S. Marine Corps' Camp Schwab in Nago, Okinawa Prefecture, the place where Futenma Air Station is scheduled to be moved to, and said he was eager to take a new approach to the issue "as soon as possible."
Kitazawa, who arrived in Okinawa Friday, told reporters after meeting with Nago Mayor Yoshikazu Shimabukuro that he will urgently discuss how to approach the Futenma transfer with Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada.
Hatoyama reaffirmed in Pittsburgh on Thursday that he will not change his "basic idea" of seeking to move the air station out of the prefecture.
The proposal by Hatoyama, who doubles as president of the Democratic Party of Japan, goes against a Japan-U.S. accord signed in 2006 to move the heliport functions of Futenma air station in downtown Ginowan in Okinawa to Camp Schwab by 2014.
In his meeting with Shimabukuro, Kitazawa said he appreciated his efforts to meet residents' needs and promote the local economy. The mayor said he basically accepts the relocation plan but asked that the V-shaped runways be built further offshore than planned.
Some local residents are calling for the runways to be constructed offshore, citing safety and noise concerns that could arise in the future.