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Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

New Marine Corps base in Guam means 'new forward basing in the Pacific'

It has become clear that the plan to relocate Okinawa-based U.S. Marines to Guam using Japan's tax money is designed to reinforce U.S. military bases in Guam as an effective stepping-stone serving U.S. preemptive strikes in any part of the world. That began when Japan and the United States on May 1 finalized the plan to realign U.S. forces in Japan.

"It's a relocation of our forces from Okinawa, but it's really part and parcel of the entire global posture realignment, the so-called forward basing in the Pacific," said Richard Lawless, the U.S. deputy defense undersecretary for Asian and Pacific affairs, in a Reuters interview on May 23.

The Japanese and U.S. governments have agreed to construct new facilities in Guam for U.S. Marines from Okinawa and Japan's paying 6.1 billion dollars as part of the total 10.3 billion dollars for Guam's new bases.

In reply to Japanese Communist Party representative Akamine Seiken's question, the Defense Agency explained that the construction of piers and helipads is aimed at allowing U.S. Marines to carry out forward deployment. New bases will reportedly be used by Marine other than those from Okinawa.

This indicates that reinforcing Guam's military functions is aimed at increasing the U.S. Marine Corps' capabilities for flexible crisis response (October 2006 Japan-U.S. Security Consultative Committee document). The relocation of part of the U.S. Marines from Okinawa will not help reduce Okinawa's burdens of U.S. military bases.

Apparently, the new U.S. Marine base, together with U.S. Andersen Air Force Base with its strategic bombers since 2004 and the U.S. Naval Apra Base which will be a homeport of U.S. attack submarines, will serve as a major hub as an integrated U.S. military network of the U.S. Navy, Air Force, and Marines in Guam.

The government replied to Akamine on May 16 that the high-standard highway to be constructed using Japanese funds will link the U.S. Apra and Andersen bases that will also have new Marine facilities.

It should also be noted that the U.S. Marines relocated from Okinawa to new U.S. bases in Guam and the Northern Ariana Islands will be used not only by U.S. forces but by the Japanese Self-Defense Forces in joint operations.

U.S. Embassy Political-Military Affairs Director Kevin Maher in a symposium in Tokyo on May 20 emphasized that the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan is designed to enhance the alliance's capability and that the need is to integrate the U.S. forces and Japanese Self-Defense Forces, adding that both forces will use Guam's new bases and carry out joint exercises there.
-Akahata, June 3, 2006