MANILA: A Japanese minister is set to visit former American military facilities in Clark Air Base and Subic Bay Naval base in September.
Ichita Yamamoto, Japan’s Minister of State for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs, will inspect how the bases in Pampanga and Zambales have been successfully converted into civilian areas and commercial zones, Kyodo News reported yesterday.
Yamamoto will reportedly use the Philippines’ experience from Subic and Clark’s development for Japan’s conversion of military bases in Okinawa Prefecture.
Okinawa, the poorest prefecture in Japan, has hosted a US military presence since 1972 but locals recently withdrew support for the American troops in the area. Residents have also blamed Tokyo for what is perceived as its lack of commitment to removing the bases.
Yamamoto’s pending visit, meanwhile, is said to be a key move in easing tension between the local community and the government, which has vowed to demilitarise Okinawa.
US forces in the Philippine bases left in 1991 after the Senate rejected a renewal of a treaty to extend the US military’s lease of the bases. President Benigno Aquino III revived talks to allow renewed presence of American troops in the Philippines amid China’s incursions into Philippine-claimed territories in the South China Sea.
The Philippine star
