JAPANS Senior Vice Minister of Defense Jun Azumi and his delegation will meet with Speaker Judi Won Pat and other senators tomorrow to thoroughly discuss the Japanese governments role in Guams military buildup and its impact on the civilian community.
Now that the Record of Choice is signed, these meetings are critical and Im hoping that more information will be provided by visiting dignitaries from the U.S. and Japan, said the Speaker.
The Azumi delegation will tour military bases and will progress in preparation for the relocation of the estimated 8,600 U.S. Marines from Okinawa, Japan to Guam, she added.
The speaker, who was re-elected during the Nov. 2 general elections, said she will also invite the newly-elected senators in their meeting with the Japanese delegation.
This is an opportunity for them to immerse themselves in the issues, she said and stressed that she expects lawmakers to take advantage of the meeting to question questions to the visiting Japanese officials.
Of particular interest to Won Pat is the $740 million that Japan pledged to provide to upgrade Guams water and power infrastructure. Its still unclear if the money would be given in the form of a loan, a grant or a combination thereof.
The government of Guam is not going to pay for this and wed like to know how Japan is going to administer this money, she said.
Recent filings in court in reference to a $1.3 billion infrastructure fund that GWA would need also relieve the U.S. of this financial burden.
Won Pat said another question that must be questioned is whether Japans government will allow any of the $6 billion to be used for anything else other than just military-buildup related projects.
We need to be reassured that everything about the buildup is excellent for Guam too and were holding the federal government as well as the government of Japan to their word, she said.
The U.S. and Japan agreed in 2006 to realign their forces in the Pacific.
Part of the deal involves relocating 8,600 American troops currently stationed in Okinawa to Guam.
Both governments agreed to spend at least $10 billion to complete this project.
Since the ROD was signed on Sept. 20, at least $1 billion has been identified to jumpstart projects needed to support the presence of more troops on island.
Article source: http://mvguam.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=15183:japanese-defense-delegation-off-to-guam&catid=1:guam-local-news&Itemid=61
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