Tokyo, Japan - The US and Japan on Friday agreed to introduce measures designed to prevent crimes undertaken by service members on Okinawa following a murder which allegedly involved a marine.
The US has around 54,000 military personnel stationed in Japan, mostly on the island of Okinawa, and crimes committed by its personnel have been a thorn in relations between the close security allies for decades.
"Although we are still continuing Japan-US talks… we agreed on enhancement of education to US military in Okinawa through involvement of the Japanese government," Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told reporters on Friday.
"In practice, we will reflect Okinawa prefecture's opinions on the Okinawa orientation guide that are used for briefings to newly arriving US military personnel," he said.
A senior foreign ministry official will give educational speeches to members of the US military in Okinawa about community relations and Japan's legal system, he said.
The countries also agreed to increase the frequency and expand the area of ongoing Japan-US joint street patrols, he added.
Japanese prosecutors indicted a US Marine last month on suspicion of murdering a 39-year-old Japanese woman at an Okinawa hotel on October 3.
The case has triggered outrage in Japan and reignited controversy over the heavy US military presence on the southern island.
US forces on the island were barred from drinking alcohol for two days early last month and faced a 30-day curfew. A second Marine was later arrested on allegations he drove a vehicle while intoxicated, Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said earlier this week.
US officials said on Friday they would extend that curfew to a portion of their service members through December 7.