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Okinawa governor revokes approval for relocation of controversial US air base, but Tokyo insists plan will go ahead

The stalemate over the relocation plan is now likely to end up in court

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Okinawa locals clash with police outside the fence of Camp Schwab, an American base near a planned relocation site of a US air base, in Nago, Okinawa.  Photo: Kyodo

Okinawa's governor has revoked approval for work needed to relocate a US air base from one area of the southern Japanese island to another, but the Tokyo government said it would still proceed with the plan.

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Local residents object to living with US Marine Air Station Futenma and want the base moved off Okinawa. Current plans call for moving it to a less developed area on the island called Henoko.

Governor Takeshi Onaga was elected last year on promises to fight the move, revoked the local approval given in 2013 by his predecessor on the grounds of “legal defects.”

“I will work to keep my promise not to allow another base in Henoko,” Onaga said.

Government spokesman Yoshihide Suga rejected Onaga's stance, saying the base must be moved for safety reasons.

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“There is no change in our plan to proceed with the work,” Suga said in Tokyo. He called Onaga's decision “very regrettable.”

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