TOKYO (AP) -- Japan and the United States have agreed to review a pact linking the closure of a major U.S. Marine base on Okinawa with the transfer of thousands of troops to the U.S. territory of Guam.
The allies are seeking to break a stalemate over the large U.S. military presence on the southern Japanese island that has held up plans for Washington to restructure troop deployments in the region.
Today's joint statement follows high-level talks to rework a 2006 agreement for 8,000 Marines on Okinawa to be transferred to Guam by 2014 if a replacement for the base -- Marine Corps Air Station Futenma -- could be built.