Japan balks at US$2 billion bill to host U.S. troops

American officials say the deployment in Japan of troops, fighter jets and the only nuclear-powered aircraft carrier based outside the U.S. has enabled Japan to hold down its own defense costs in line with its pacifist constitution.

They say the U.S. presence also prevents an arms race in East Asia, acts as a deterrent against North Korea, and counters the rise of China.

Facilities such as on-base golf courses represent a small fraction of the sum U.S. taxpayers chip in for the defense of Japan about US$3.9 billion a year, according to a U.S. State Department official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the details.

“There is no difference in the facilities that our forces have here than they have anywhere else in the world, including the United States,” Lt. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, the commander of the U.S Army's Pacific Forces, told The Associated Press. “But we cannot view forces that are out here simply as Japan. They are in Asia; they are available for responsive deployment.”

Japan covers much of the cost for supporting American troops, including utilities, maintenance and physical upgrades plus the wages of tens of thousands of Japanese civilians working on the bases.

Previous governments were too willing to pay because they wanted to maintain a special relationship with the United States, said Eiichi Hoshino, professor of international relations at the University of the Ryukyus.

Tokyo's share rose sharply until 2001 but has since decreased steadily, largely because of the shrinking economy and the objections of Hatoyama's Democratic Party when it was in the opposition. Costs have been cut, in part, by reducing utilities payments and the salaries and number of Japanese base employees, a process members of Hatoyama's party want to accelerate.

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