A “promise” made a quarter of a century ago by the Japanese and U.S. governments remains unfulfilled.

Tokyo and Washington should abandon their plan to build a new U.S. military base in the Henoko district of Nago, Okinawa Prefecture, which is undoable.

Instead, the two governments should start working on an alternative based on the original purpose of the 1996 agreement to close the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, also in Okinawa Prefecture, and return the land to Japan.

April 12 will mark the 25th anniversary of the announcement of the bilateral agreement on the Futenma facility located in the middle of a densely populated residential area and said to be the world’s most dangerous military base.

The 1995 rape of a Japanese schoolgirl by U.S. servicemen triggered a wave of anger and protests among people in Okinawa, who suffer from the heavy U.S. military presence in the southernmost prefecture. Huge numbers of local residents gathered at a protest rally, one of the biggest held since Okinawa reverted to Japanese sovereignty in 1972.

Alarmed that the situation threatened the Japan-U.S. security alliance, the two countries hammered out a plan to return the Futenma facility to Japan as a symbolic move to scale back the burden borne by the local population.

Under the original plan, the air base was to be returned to Japan in five to seven years. But this has yet to happen because the return was based on the premise that a replacement facility would be built within the prefecture to maintain deterrence.

Tokyo initially hoped that the functions of the Futenma base might be integrated with those of Kadena Air Base, a U.S. Air Force installation in Okinawa. But this hope was soon dashed.

Another proposal, the construction of a heliport off Nago, a city located in a less crowded area on Okinawa’s main island, was scrapped. The two governments finally agreed to build a V-shaped runway on reclaimed land in the Henoko district of Nago.

But this project has been plagued by problems. The recent discovery of a large swath of soft ground under the seabed in the reclamation area is expected to cause further delays in the construction work and drive up costs.

Even if current expectations hold up, it is believed that the Futenma base will not be returned until the mid-2030s, at the earliest.

In a report released in November, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank based in Washington, D.C., said, “It appears unlikely that this (project) will ever be completed.”

All these facts argue for abandoning the current plan to build a replacement facility.

The two governments should instead explore more realistic approaches based on a review of the security strategy in response to progress in military technology and changes in the security environment. They should, for instance, consider more dispersed deployments of U.S. Marines.

During the past quarter of a century, 11 prime ministers faced this tough policy challenge. Some showed a keen awareness of Okinawa’s history of suffering and engaged in sincere dialogue with local residents. They include Ryutaro Hashimoto, who worked out the bilateral agreement, and Keizo Obuchi, who decided to hold the Group of Eight summit in 2000 in Okinawa.

But during the more than eight years since former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe returned to power in late 2012, the government has forged ahead with the Henoko project, ignoring the local people’s fierce opposition to the plan as expressed in a gubernatorial election and a prefectural referendum.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, a member of the core group of government policymakers during this period, first as Abe’s chief Cabinet secretary and now as the nation's leader, should bear heavy responsibility for this.

Suga is scheduled to visit the United States and hold talks with President Joe Biden next week. Suga is expected to underscore his cooperation with Biden to enhance the Japan-U.S. security alliance in the face of China’s rise as a leading military and economic power.

Given these circumstances, it is all the more vital to secure the support of local residents for hosting U.S. military bases in Japan.

We hope Suga and Biden will reaffirm the two governments’ commitment to the original objective of the agreement negotiated 25 years ago--eliminating the danger posed by the Futenma base and reducing the burden borne by people in Okinawa.

The Biden administration has pledged to promote democratic values globally as a way to counter China’s authoritarianism.

It should not undermine the values of democracy by pursuing the Henoko project forcefully in the face of strong local opposition.

--The Asahi Shimbun, April 10