Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has vowed to defend
disputed islands from incursions by China, after a series of confrontations at
sea.
Speaking Saturday to Japan's Self-Defense Forces stationed
on the southern island of Okinawa, Mr. Abe said he would defend Japan's land,
sea and air at all costs. He was apparently referring to remote islands
controlled by Japan but claimed by China, called Senkaku by Tokyo and Daioyu by
Beijing. China has regularly sent surveillance ships into waters near the
islands, raising tensions in both countries.
In national politics, Mr. Abe met later Saturday with
Okinawa Governor Hirokazu Nakaima. The two failed to reach an agreement on the
relocation of U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma air station on the island.
The governor repeated demands by the local population that
the base be moved off the island. It is located in a heavily populated area of
Ginowan, and residents complain of the noise made by jets and the safety of
people living around the facility.
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