The Japanese and U.S. governments said Monday they have reached "substantial agreement" on a new accord that allows local Japanese officials to enter U.S. military bases to conduct environmental surveys of land expected to be returned to Japanese control.
The accord was proposed as a way to facilitate the contentious plan to move U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma elsewhere in Okinawa, which hosts the bulk of U.S. military facilities in Japan.
But the outline of the new pact announced Monday does not offer details on the extent to which Japan will be ensured the right of access to U.S. facilities, leaving open the question of whether the pact will be effective in preventing contamination, including on land expected to be returned to Japanese control.