Fitial said while the CNMI government generally welcomes the idea, the ultimate decision lies on the U.S. government because matters concerning national defense and foreign affairs are within its jurisdiction as the 14 island-chain is just its commonwealth.
“I don’t know what the U.S. government will do,” the governor told the media during a news briefing on Wednesday afternoon following his brief talks with three visiting members of the Japanese Diet sent to the island to feel the sentiment of the CNMI about Futenma’s possible relocation to one of its islands, possibly Tinian.
Nonetheless, he said he will formally bring the issue to the U.S. government.
“Anything that has to do with defense and foreign affairs, we defer that to the United States government,” he said.
“I will communicate with the U.S. government. I will ask them for their advice and for their support because I know that this would be beneficial for our people. I always have to defer with the U.S. government if it concerns the defense and foreign affairs. But as far as lands are concerned, that’s my jurisdiction,” he added.
Rep. Mikio Shimoji, policy chief of the People’s New Party, Rep. Ryoichi Hattori of the Social Democratic Party, and Rep. Tomoko Abe, policy chief of the Social Democratic Party, held brief talks with local officials about the Futenma relocation issue.
The Futenma Airbase is home to about 4,000 American troops located in Ginowan City, Okinawa.
In 2006, the U.S. and Japan agreed to relocate Futenma to another area in Okinawa after bouts of protests from residents complaining about environmental problems in their locality and concerns about crimes.
A decade before then Okinawans protested the presence of the Futenma Airbase after a 12-year-old girl was gang-raped by three American soldiers.
The newly installed coalition government of Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama now wants the airbase out of the country.
Guam, which will be home to about 8,000 Marines who will be relocated also from Okinawa, is opposing the idea of hosting the Futenma Airbase due to environmental and social concerns.
Due to the CNMI’s close proximity to Guam, it could be the next option for the contested base.
“We heard that Guam is not interested in accommodating the military from Futenma. If the federal government will allow us, we welcome the U.S. military from Futenma,” said Fitial. “We understand that the contingency of Futenma is only 4,000 Marines. I think we can afford to accommodate 4,000.”
The U.S. environmental impact assessment for the proposed relocation of the Marines to Guam and the use of Tinian and other parts of the CNMI for military drills is expected to be completed this year.
