The relocation of some U.S. Marines in Okinawa Prefecture to Guam has started, Japan’s Defense Ministry said Saturday.
The transfer, aimed at reducing Okinawa’s burden of hosting U.S. troops and maintaining deterrence in the region at the same time, began about 19 years after an initial agreement was reached in October 2005 at a meeting of the two countries’ foreign and defense ministers.
The first group, made up of about 100 logistics members of the Marine Corps’ III Marine Expeditionary Force, will move to the U.S. territory, according to the ministry.