Washington: Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada on Sunday in the United States for talks on a controversial US military base that has clouded relations between the close allies, officials said.
Okada was to hold talks with Defence Secretary Robert Gates on Monday before travelling on to Canada for a meeting of Group of Eight foreign ministers, where Okada was to meet US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
On Sunday, Okada was expected to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery alongside a US official, a frequent gesture between the former World War II foes, officials said.
The fate of the US Marine Corps` Futenma Air Station on Okinawa island in southern Japan has been a thorn in ties since a centre-left government came to power in Japan six months ago.
The administration of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has been reviewing a 2006 pact with the United States to relocate the airbase within Okinawa and instead is exploring the possibility of moving it entirely off the island.
Under a reported compromise plan floated ahead of Okada`s trip, Futenma operations would be split across several locations.
PTI
