(Mainichi Japan) January 19, 2010
Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet, Vice Adm. John Bird, center, Rear Adm. Richard Wren, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Japan, left, and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Fleet Commander, Vice chief Adm. Masahiko Sugimoto salute during a ceremony marking the 50th anniversary of the signing of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty at the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force base in Yokosuka, west of Tokyo , Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010.(AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said the relocation of U.S. Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture is the litmus test for developing the Japan-U.S. alliance.
"It's impossible to develop the Japan-U.S. security arrangement into a reliable one without solving the Futenma issue. Whether we can solve the issue by May is a litmus test for that," Hatoyama told reporters on Monday.
He made the remarks prior to the 50th anniversary of the signing of the current Japan-U.S. Security Treaty on Tuesday.
The treaty, which stirred heated debate five decades ago, is now appreciated as the cornerstone of the Japan-U.S. alliance.
At the same time, however, the bilateral alliance has come to a crossroad as symbolized by the Futenma relocation issue.
Confusion over the issue is attributable to a disagreement between Tokyo and Washington over the balance of the benefits and burdens shared by the two countries, which is the basic principle of the alliance.
Such disagreement is seen in the two countries' nuclear policy. The Washington Times reported in its online edition on Jan. 7 that the U.S. compilation of the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) will be delayed by one month until March 1 because it is considering whether to declare that it will give up a pre-emptive nuclear attack option.
Consideration of no first-use of nuclear arms, which is regarded as the first step toward nuclear arms reductions, is believed to be linked to President Barack Obama's desire for a world without nuclear weapons.
At the same time, the U.S. protection of its allies with its nuclear umbrella is an important theme in the NPR.
In a speech he made in Tokyo last November, Obama said the United States will maintain its nuclear deterrence and commit itself to the defense of its allies including Japan.
Obama's stance has raised questions about how to keep consistency between his quest for a world without nuclear weapons and the maintenance of the nuclear umbrella.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Ministry has postponed until late February the compilation of a report on its investigations into Japan-U.S. secret pacts on the introduction of nuclear arms into Japan's territory.
If Tokyo officially admits the existence of the bilateral secret agreement that supported the nuclear umbrella, it will also call into question Japan's policy on the U.S.-led nuclear umbrella.
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