In an effort to get the relocation plan moving for U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa, the government and the prefecture began talks Friday on economic stimulus measures and ways to lighten the burden of hosting U.S. bases there.
The panel decided to set up two subpanels — one to find ways to prime the pump of the Okinawan economy and the other to ease noise pollution, crime and other problems attributed to the U.S. military.
But the panel, which includes Cabinet ministers and Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima, is not designed to discuss the relocation plan itself. It is effectively the central government's attempt to show the carrot ahead of the stick by addressing economic benefits first and the relocation to Nago, Okinawa Prefecture, last.