[h=1]U.S. likely to scale down plans for bases in Japan and Guam[/h] [h=2]Political hurdles, rising price tag forcing hand of Obama team[/h] The Washington Post
The U.S. military will probably scale back plans to build key bases in Japan and Guam because of political obstacles and budget pressures, according to U.S. and Japanese officials, complicating the Obama administration's efforts to strengthen the presence of U.S. forces in Asia.
Under a deal announced Wednesday with Japanese officials, the U.S. government said it will accelerate plans to withdraw 8,000 marines from Okinawa. The decision came after several years of stalled talks to find a site for a new marine base nearby.
Washington's inability to resolve its basing arrangements in Okinawa, as well as the rising price tag of a related plan for a $23 billion military buildup on Guam, underscore the challenges facing the Obama administration as it seeks to make a strategic "pivot" toward the Pacific after a decade of fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
U.S. military officials had planned to relocate the 8,000 marines and their families to Guam in 2014 as part of a massive military expansion on the U.S. territory in the Pacific. Japanese officials and media reported, however, that only 4,700 of the marines would end up on Guam, a sign that the Pentagon is reconsidering its plans there.
U.S. likely to scale down plans for bases in Japan and Guam | The Japan Times Online