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Okinawa and the US-Japan Alliance
An Indo-Pacific Foreign Policy and Defense Seminar featuring:
Assemblyman Osamu Toguchi,
Chairman of the General Affairs and Planning Committee, Okinawa Assembly
Senator Yukihisa Fujita,
Constitutional Democratic Party (CDJ)
Dr. Satu P. Limaye (Moderator)
Vice President, East-West Center & Director, East West Center in Washington
Six members of the Okinawa Prefecture Assembly traveled to Washington to offer local political perspectives on the status of US basing on Okinawa. On February 24 2019, in a rare Okinawa Prefectural referendum, an overwhelming majority of voters
opposed the construction of the new Marine Corps Air Station abutting Henoko Bay coastal waters. This project, which has encountered delays and controversies, is a key issue in the Japan central government’s relations with Okinawa and has important implications for the US-Japan alliance. The closure of what many consider the dangerous and outdated Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, in the middle of Ginowan City, has been contingent on the opening of the new air station at Henoko. The legislators argued why these two should be delinked. In this context, also discussed how climate change will potentially affect the utility of the new facility at Henoko. In addition, discussed the politics of Okinawa-Government of Japan relations and their impact on the US-Japan alliance.
Assemblyman Osamu TOGUCHI, Chairman of the General Affairs and Planning Committee of the Okinawa Assembly and former Senator Yukihisa FUJITA of the Constitutional Democratic Party (CDJ) led a discussion with Assembly members Ms. Sueko YAMAUCHI, Mr. Misao SENAGA, Ms. Sumie NISHIME, Mr. Satoru NAKASONE, and Mr. Ichiro MIYAGI. The delegation’s biographical information can be found here.
For more images, please visit the album for this event on the East-West Center's Flickr page.
Satu Limaye is Vice President of the East-West Center and the Director of the East-West Center in Washington where he created and now directs the Asia Matters for America initiative and is the founding editor of the Asia Pacific Bulletin. He is also a Senior Advisor at CNA Corp (Center for Naval Analyses) and Senior Fellow on Asia History and Policy at the Foreign Policy Institute at Paul H. Nitze School of International Studies (SAIS). He is a magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Georgetown University and received his doctorate from Oxford University (Magdalen College) where he was a George C. Marshall Scholar. Dr. Limaye publishes and presents on a range of Indo-Pacific issues. Recent publications include: Raging Waters: China, India, Bangladesh and Brahmaputra River Politics (with Nilanthi Samaranayake and Joel Wuthnow); Why ASEAN is Here to Stay and What that Means for the US; The United States-Japan Alliance and Southeast Asia: Meeting Regional Demands; and Weighted West: The Indian Navy’s New Maritime Strategy, Capabilities, and Diplomacy.
Okinawa and the US-Japan Alliance
An Indo-Pacific Foreign Policy and Defense Seminar featuring:
Assemblyman Osamu Toguchi,
Chairman of the General Affairs and Planning Committee, Okinawa Assembly
Senator Yukihisa Fujita,
Constitutional Democratic Party (CDJ)
Dr. Satu P. Limaye (Moderator)
Vice President, East-West Center & Director, East West Center in Washington
Six members of the Okinawa Prefecture Assembly traveled to Washington to offer local political perspectives on the status of US basing on Okinawa. On February 24 2019, in a rare Okinawa Prefectural referendum, an overwhelming majority of voters
opposed the construction of the new Marine Corps Air Station abutting Henoko Bay coastal waters. This project, which has encountered delays and controversies, is a key issue in the Japan central government’s relations with Okinawa and has important implications for the US-Japan alliance. The closure of what many consider the dangerous and outdated Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, in the middle of Ginowan City, has been contingent on the opening of the new air station at Henoko. The legislators argued why these two should be delinked. In this context, also discussed how climate change will potentially affect the utility of the new facility at Henoko. In addition, discussed the politics of Okinawa-Government of Japan relations and their impact on the US-Japan alliance.
Assemblyman Osamu TOGUCHI, Chairman of the General Affairs and Planning Committee of the Okinawa Assembly and former Senator Yukihisa FUJITA of the Constitutional Democratic Party (CDJ) led a discussion with Assembly members Ms. Sueko YAMAUCHI, Mr. Misao SENAGA, Ms. Sumie NISHIME, Mr. Satoru NAKASONE, and Mr. Ichiro MIYAGI. The delegation’s biographical information can be found here.
For more images, please visit the album for this event on the East-West Center's Flickr page.
Satu Limaye is Vice President of the East-West Center and the Director of the East-West Center in Washington where he created and now directs the Asia Matters for America initiative and is the founding editor of the Asia Pacific Bulletin. He is also a Senior Advisor at CNA Corp (Center for Naval Analyses) and Senior Fellow on Asia History and Policy at the Foreign Policy Institute at Paul H. Nitze School of International Studies (SAIS). He is a magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Georgetown University and received his doctorate from Oxford University (Magdalen College) where he was a George C. Marshall Scholar. Dr. Limaye publishes and presents on a range of Indo-Pacific issues. Recent publications include: Raging Waters: China, India, Bangladesh and Brahmaputra River Politics (with Nilanthi Samaranayake and Joel Wuthnow); Why ASEAN is Here to Stay and What that Means for the US; The United States-Japan Alliance and Southeast Asia: Meeting Regional Demands; and Weighted West: The Indian Navy’s New Maritime Strategy, Capabilities, and Diplomacy.
