In a bid to block the planned relocation of the Futenma military base within Okinawa, the prefectural government has created a panel to examine the last governor's approval of the offshore landfill project for the new site.
The six-member panel, including lawyers and environmental experts, will submit a report in April at the earliest to the current governor, Takeshi Onaga.
Despite Onaga's vowed opposition to moving Futenma within Okinawa, the Abe administration plans to forge ahead with the transfer of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma from a densely populated area in Ginowan to a coastal area in Nago in line with an accord with the United States.