The senior U.S. diplomat on Asian affairs is heading to Japan at a time of increased tensions in U.S.-Japanese relations, according to AP. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell will be in Tokyo Feb. 1-2 before traveling to Seoul on Feb. 3. Tension in U.S.-Japanese relations has risen over uncertainty about a key U.S. military base on the southern island of Okinawa. In 2006, Washington and Tokyo agreed to move Futenma's facilities to a less crowded, northern part of the island, as well as move 8,000 Marines to the U.S. territory of Guam. But Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's government, which swept to power last year, has balked at moving Futenma to the north.
