'Trust me' comment raises speculation

Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said Thursday that his words "trust me" uttered to U.S. President Barack Obama had no bearing on Japan's direction concerning the relocation of a U.S. military base in Okinawa Prefecture.

Hatoyama said those words to Obama when they were discussing the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma during their Nov. 13 summit in Tokyo.

Media reports suggested that Hatoyama's remark of "trust me" gave Obama the impression that Tokyo would proceed with a 2006 Japan-U.S. agreement to relocate the Futenma airfield from Ginowan in southern Okinawa Prefecture to Nago in the northern part of the prefecture.

Hatoyama told reporters in Tokyo that "trust me" did not refer to the new site of the airfield.

Hatoyama said he explained to Obama that residents in Okinawa Prefecture were demanding that the airfield be relocated outside the prefecture.

He said he told the U.S. president that under such a situation, Japan wants to reach a conclusion as soon as possible.

"So I said, 'Trust me.' Then, he told me that he trusts me," Hatoyama said. "I think there is such a relationship of trust (between us)."

What fueled the media speculation that the words meant something more was Obama's speech the next day.

Obama said that through a ministerial-level working group, the two countries will focus on carrying out the agreement to relocate the airfield to Nago.

But later in Singapore, Hatoyama told reporters, "The Japan-U.S. agreement is not the premise (for discussions of the working group)."

During the summit, Obama said he understands the need for the Hatoyama administration to review the 2006 agreement, sources said.

However, Obama also urged the Japanese prime minister to implement the agreement, saying the basics should be kept. He also said Japan and the United States are good friends, and that the impact from the Futenma issue should be minimized.

Hatoyama explained to Obama that during the campaign for the Aug. 30 Lower House election, his Democratic Party of Japan told voters it would try to relocate the Futenma airfield out of the prefecture or out of Japan.

He said expectations for such a relocation had increased among people in Okinawa Prefecture.

That's when his "trust me" comment came out, the sources said.(IHT/Asahi: November 20,2009)