Political Quotes

“Today President Clinton arrives in Asia on a trip designed to shore up the United States security relationship with Japan and Korea. Since the conviction of three marines on charges of raping a 12-year-old girl in Okinawa and the ensuing protests on the island, the future status of U.S. forces on Okinawa has been unclear. Following the rape incident, other issues, such as the return of land used by U.S. forces on Okinawa, have boiled to the surface. Last week, landowners on Okinawa refused to renew land leases on which U.S. forces train. Pressure from Okinawan landowners has forced the Pentagon to reevaluate the future status of U.S. military bases on Okinawa. A discussion of United States forces in Japan inevitably involves an evaluation of the United States presence in both Guam and the Asian Pacific region and the Pentagon's policy of forward deployment of 100,000 American forces in the region. I am pleased that the administration has stood firm on our security commitments and on maintaining the military forces necessary to support these commitments.”