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Obama interviewed by Japan broadcaster
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US President Barack Obama will kick off his Asian tour on Friday. Japan is his first stop and it's also the first time that Obama visit Japan since the new Japanese government took office. Prior to his departure, Japanese broadcaster NHK has interviewed the US President about their bilateral relationship and its stands on the Korean Peninsular.
Obama was asked about Japan's new government's plans to move a major US Marine Base in Okinawa.
Barack Obama, said, "In any bilateral relationship, I think there's constantly adjusting to new issues that may come up, but I'm confident that you won't see fundamental changes to our relationship."
The relocation of the US Base has threatened to sour the US-Japan ties.
Some 47 thousand American troops are based in Japan and more than half of them in Okinawa.
The two countries agreed in 2006 to relocate the base from an urban area to another part of the island. But Japan's August election has rekindled opposition.
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama suggested it could be re-located outside the island.
But the Obama administration rejected the suggestion and insists that Japan stick to the pact until 2014.
Obama also talked about his stance on the DPRK, where he's confident of a non-nuclear country.
Barack Obama, said, "I think that we are already starting to see potential arrangements made around bilateral talks in service of the six-party talks. We have been very clear about the fact that any discussions between the United States and North Korea are not separate, but are rather part of the broader effort within the six-party talks to create a non-nuclear Korean Peninsular."
The six-party includes the DPRK, China, South Korea, Russia, Japan and the United States, and aims to find a peaceful way to solve the DPRK nuclear issue.
The DPRK has boycotted the talks since April in protest to a UN condemnation on its test-firing of a so-called satellite.
The Asian tour will also take Obama to China and South Korea, after he attends the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Singapore this weekend.
