At Stake: Okinawan Relief...And The Harmony Of US-Japan Relations

By Jeff Marchesseault

GUAM - In civilian life he's a pragmatic lawyer and businessman with a lot of experience in Japan and a knack for one of the country's most cutting-edge industries: technology. He also knows a thing or two about the environmental and climate change issues so mutually important to American-Japanese relations.

In service to his country, John Roos is now President Obama's Ambassador to Japan. And the businessman is driving a hard bargain with Japan's indecisive new government: decide now to stick to the bilateral troop transfer plan laid out in 2006, or hold up the Guam buildup and sour U.S.-Japan relations. Japan Democrats say they hope to iron this wrinkle out by year’s end.

That, according to the Associated Press.

Under the U.S.-Japan accord, the functions of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma would move out of Okinawa's crowded Ginowan City to a remote part of the prefecture called Nago, near America's Camp Schwab military base.

Alongside the internal Okinawa move, as many as 8,600 Marines and their 9,000 or so dependents would transfer to Guam, where a $15 billion buildup is scheduled to get underway by late next summer.

Read the Associates Press story, "US envoy urges Okinawa base issue resolved soon", December 1, 2009.

Click here to learn more about John Roos in Black Tokyo's interview with former U.S. Vice President Walter Mondale.

Official Biography Of John V. Roos, U.S. Ambassador To Japan

Prior to his appointment as ambassador, Mr. Roos served as Chief Executive Officer at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a law firm headquartered in Silicon Valley which is known for its representation of technology, life sciences, and growth companies. Mr. Roos had been a partner at the firm since 1988 and also served in a number of other senior leadership roles including the firm's Board of Directors.

Mr. Roos helped lead the firm during the waves of innovation in Silicon Valley, from the growth of software and communications, to the Internet Age and the emergence of biotechnology, to today's focus on clean technology and renewable energy. He was a leader in cultivating the firm's diversity initiatives. Mr. Roos has been active in local government and served on national political campaigns for President Obama, former Vice President Walter Mondale and Senator Bill Bradley, among others.

Mr. Roos grew up in San Francisco and graduated from Lowell High School in 1973 before attending college at Stanford University, from which he graduated Phi Beta Kappa with honors and distinction in 1977. He then went on to Stanford Law School, where he was a member of the Stanford Law Review and Order of the Coif, earning his Juris Doctor in 1980.

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Nesianboy   |2009-12-01 13:27:17 I oppose the build up for many reasons and I do hope that it is stopped in whatever forms in comes in. Reply | Quote 0   0

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