Japan and the United States are negotiating to strengthen their joint operations in case of a military emergency in Japan, and could reach an agreement by June, the daily Asahi Shimbun reported Thursday.
Under the plan, Japan will allow the US military to use some Japanese civilian facilities, such as harbors and airports, in case of emergencies, including a flare-up across the Taiwan Straits, the paper said.
Japan wants the United States to realign its decades-old heavy military presence following the growing outcry from regions hosting US bases to reduce their burden.
By offering civilian facilities, Tokyo hopes the Pentagon will become more receptive to eliminating certain US facilities in Japan, the newspaper said.
On the other hand, Tokyo is actively pursuing a closer defense cooperation with Washington to deal with what it says the new threats in East Asia, and seeking a greater role for itself in such a partnership.
The agreement is expected to be formally announced in June, and the two sides would then draw up plans for different contingencies in the vicinity of Japan, according to the report.
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