Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Geckoman]

The US government is moving 8,000 of its marines from Okinawa, Japan, to Guam, USA. And the Japanese government will be paying 59% of the cost of this trasfer, which is $6.1 billion US dollars.

Any thoughts on this massive relocation of US marines to Guam? Is this relocation from Okinawa to Guam a part of a larger change in America's military strategy in this part of the world? Could there be trouble in the Taiwan Straits in the near future?


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BBC News:

US and Japan Make Troop Cost Deal

Okinawans have long complained about the presence of US bases
Japan and the United States have resolved a dispute over the costs of relocating 8,000 US marines from Okinawa to the Pacific island of Guam.
Tokyo had objected to US calls for it to pay 75% of the estimated $10bn cost.

But after talks in Washington on Sunday, a deal was reached under which Tokyo will contribute $6.1bn to the cost of relocation to the US territory.

The dispute has held up agreement on overall realignment plans for the US military presence in Japan.

The agreement was due to have been finalised at the end of March.

Japanese Defence Minister Fukushiro Nukaga had a three-hour meeting with Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

"We have come to an understanding that we both feel is in the best interests of our two countries," Mr Rumsfeld said.

Further talks

Tokyo and Washington agreed last year the broad framework of a plan to reduce the number of troops on Okinawa, where most of the American forces are based.


About half of all US troops in Japan are based on Okinawa

It included the proposal to redeploy the 8,000 marines to Guam but the Japanese government felt its contribution to the moving costs should be smaller.

After several rounds of negotiations over the last few weeks, Japan's Defence Agency agreed to pay 59% of the costs in grants, loans and investments.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said Japan's contribution was needed to accelerate the transfer.

"Japan needs to shoulder the necessary costs in order to achieve as early as possible our two goals of reducing the local burden and maintaining the deterrent capability," he told reporters in Tokyo.

Meanwhile, talks continue in Washington and the overall relocation plan is expected to be finalised next month.

Source: BBC News; Monday, 24 April 2006, 03:48 GMT 04:48 UK
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4937494.stm

[merkurix]

Okinawa is the poorest prefecture in Japan. If the soldiers go, there goes a nice chunk of change to the local economy. On the other hand, it will probably be nice to no longer be burdened by the shenanigans of many rowdy Marines. It will be an interesting change.

[RACETRAITOR]

Okinawa has had some of the most public travesties committed by GIs against the local populace. Nobody would be more happy to see the soldiers leave than the Okinawans.

[kimchi_pizza]

[Guri Guy]

I think the Okinawan economy will suffer in the short term anyway. I loved Okinawa when I visited it. The nearby islands are beautiful too. I'd love to teach English there. ^^ I wonder how this will affect the market for learning English there?

Here's an article on the subject:

Distance, and its perils, define Pacific operations. Kadena's proximity to potential battlefields is an advantage for short-range fighters, but a liability too, since it's within range of North Korea's and China's tactical ballistic missiles. The U.S. Navy has deployed rudimentary sea-based missile defenses in the Sea of Japan in the form of Raytheon SM-3 Standard interceptors on board a handful of the 175 ships in the Pacific Fleet. As a backstop, in August the Army stationed a Lockheed Martin PAC-3 anti-missile battery at Kadena to protect the air base.

Guam, more than 1,000 mi. to the south, is protected from ballistic missiles by its distance, allowing the Army to postpone a planned PAC-3 deployment to the island to around 2012. What's more, while local political opposition has long plagued U.S. forces in Japan, the Chamorros of Guam mostly welcome the 12,000 military personnel on the island. "It may be easier for us to be there, as far as the diplomatic issue is concerned," Monroe says "but if we're in Guam, we're out of the fight" due to the distance.

This distance has shaped the force structure on Guam. For three years, the island's Andersen Air Base has hosted rotations of heavy bombers, tankers and patrol planes from the U.S., all assets with long ranges and long loiter times that mitigate the impact of distance on their operations. In February, the USAF activated the 36th Operations Group on the island to smooth the comings and goings of B-52H Stratofortresses, B-1B Lancers and B-2A Spirits. And this year, the Air Force will permanently station RQ-4B Global Hawk spy drones at Andersen. To support these aircraft plus the three attack submarines that began arriving in 2002, two more submarines that are planned and as many as 8,000 Marines from Okinawa, the Pentagon is investing up to $1 billion in construction over the next decade.

Okinawa and Guam thus fulfill complementary roles in U.S. Pacific strategy-the former as a staging base for short-range fighters, the latter as a safer, albeit more distant, base for bombers, drones and submarines.

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_generic.jsp?channel=dti&id=news/dtFORT0407.xml&headline=U.S.%20Strengthens%20Presence%20in%20Okinawa%20and%20Guam

[spliff]

Good, I'm gonna get there before them and open up a bar...

[contrarian]

Move the Marines to Korea.

(Maybe another try from Hamhung in NK? '-( )

Better port facilities and a friendly atmosphere. I would love to see a couple of bar fights between the USMC and the ROK Marines.

[cbclark4]

[duns0014]

[contrarian]

A friend of mine who had been in the US Marines in Nam said that the Koreans were tough and ruthless in the extreme. "Muscles in their sh . . was the term. And they were the ones that started collecting ears.

Those boys are fit

[merkurix]

[Geckoman]

From what I've heard and read, the South Korean forces in the Vietnam War went berzerk and massacred people and that this has caused strains in diplomatic relationships between South Korea and Vietnam, and that South Koreans don't like to talk about their country's war crimes during the Vietnam War and that Koreans don't really know much about it themselves.

Assuming it's true, and Koreans are uneducated about and/or do not fully admit to their country's war crimes during the Vietnam War, then Koreans needs to get educated about it and/or admit to it.

Just as Koreans criticise Japan for whitewashing and denying their World War II crimes, Koreans should not whitewash or deny their own Vietnam War crimes.

[Geckoman]

Here's some more information about this relocation from today's "Marianas Variety" newspaper ( www.mvariety.com ).
See article below.

Looks like the relocation of US marines won't begin until 2012.

I've also read in the Guam paper, the "Pacific Daily News" ( www.guampdn.com ), that real estate prices are sky rocketing in Guam due to the anticipation of the marines. So I guess now's a good time to buy property there, before it gets even higher.
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Relocation of Marines to Begin in 2012
By Gemma Q. Casas
Variety News Staff

A MILITARY official overseeing preparations for the relocation of the 8,000 U.S. Marines from Okinawa, Japan to Guam says the actual physical movement of the troops won�t take place until late 2012 and this may even be pushed back a year later pending the completion of housing and other related-facilities for them and their families.

Capt. Robert Lee, director of the Guam Joint Program Office, the unit tasked to prepare Guam and the Northern Marianas for the relocation project, said not a single contract has been awarded in connection with the project.

He said no contract can be awarded until the environmental impact statement is completed as required by the U.S. National Environmental Policy Act.

�We�re in the middle of our environmental impact study. We expect to have it done around 2010 and until that�s completed, and a record of decision it�s called, is signed by the assistant secretary of the Navy, no contract can be bidded out until it is done,� he said.

�Right now, we�re studying Guam and the CNMI so there�s no definite answers yet where they are going to go. The basing will be in Guam. But there are things that we�re looking at the CNMI chain. Sure there is possibility but we have to wait for the EIS to tell us what is feasible,� he added.

The Marines coming early next year won�t be permanently staying yet on Guam but will participate in regular training exercises.

�I think they are just very excited and hoping it will happen,� said Lee when asked to clarify why some officials are saying that the Marines will start relocating to Guam in 2008. �Honestly, the earliest you would see it happening is late 2012. More than likely it�s going to be pushed to 2013 and 2014. There has to be some facilities before the Marines can come here. So it�s all contingent on how fast we get those results. Again, 2012 is the earliest date that some of them might move (to Guam).�

He added, �The relocation agreement is to have the Marines relocated there (on Guam) by 2014. Our goal is to start moving them as soon as possible. The construction, we hope to start in 2010. And as the buildings are completed, we�ll start moving as early as 2012 or 2013.�

A major issue is Guam�s shortage of skilled workers. Lee said the island may need up to 15,000 skilled workers to work on U.S. military-related projects. �I think you are aware about the labor issue that we have. We�re looking at 12,000 to 15,000 H-2 workers. And it�s not just automatic. There are only 65,000 (H-2) visas given out each year for the entire nation,� he said. �We got to find a way to get a special exemption for the (foreign) workers that will come to Guam. There�s a lot of things going on and political work for that.�

Lee said the U.S. and Japan agreed to relocate the Marines from Okinawa to Guam because it will best support their goals of providing security in the Asia-Pacific Region without jeopardizing Japan�s security.

�While we move the Marines from Okinawa, we�re still able to provide the defense support that we need to provide to Japan. We relocate some of our forces in the Pacific but still keep the umbrella protection,� he said.

�The threats have changed over the years. We�ve gone from the Cold War era into a new era so again, this is a (Department of Defense)-wide effort and they decided to just relocate them down to Guam,� he added.

Article Source: Marianas Variety, Monday, June 25th, 2007
http://www.mvariety.com/frontpage/front01.htm
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[Ilsanman]

[Guri Guy]