The government will boost spending on U.S. forces stationed in Japan by 1.4 percent over the next five years, it said this week, supporting the U.S. military's Asian presence in the face of a rising China.
Japan's contribution to cover such expenses as salaries for workers at U.S. bases and utilities is set at ¥189.3 billion per year on average for the five-year period starting next April.
That is up from actual averaged annual spending of ¥186.6 billion over the past five years. The planned outlay is subject to fluctuations in labor costs.