26 Japanese Mayors want to close the US base

The mayors of 26 cities in Okinawa Prefecture expressed the need to close the US military base because of the growth of tension in the region. It is reported that they have officially sent requests to Tokyo to radically revise the US-Japanese agreement on the status of the armed forces.

Protest of the locals against the US base continue.  The tension has intensified after the murder of a local girl by the US soldier.

It is reported that over the weekend the base on Okinawa is going to be visited by the defense minister Tomomi Inada. This will be her first visit since her appointment. Only last month the United States transferred  26 stealth bombers to Okinawa.