Okinawa Population Grows More Angry Over US Military Base in Region

Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga said that the population of Japan's Okinawa Prefecture is growing more angry over the plans of the country's government to relocate a US military base from one part of the island to another.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The population of Japan's Okinawa Prefecture is growing more angry over the plans of the country's government to relocate a US military base from one part of the island to another, Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga said Sunday.

Japanese authorities are planning to relocate the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to the city of Nago. The plans face opposition from local environmentalists and civic groups who are against damage to flora and fauna, as well as US military presence in the region.

"People in Okinawa never volunteered to host military bases… And the more the government insists the work continues, the more alienated and angry the people of Okinawa become," Onaga was quoted as saying by Euronews.

Rallies have been erupting in Japan over the government's decision of the US base's relocation, which was agreed upon back in 2006.

At the time, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government confirmed the deal with the United States and asked former Okinawa Governor Hirokazu Nakaima to approve the relocation.

Okinawa's current leadership suggests relocating the US base from densely populated areas of the island to outside the country altogether.