--- description: The land to be returned represents one-sixth of the total U.S. military presence on the island title: U.S. to Return Land from Okinawa Military Bases to Japan image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ab12f88327738df/6988a048a988caf23f6b8e15/gettyimages-543122868.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # U.S. Military To Return 4,000 Hectares of Land on Okinawa to Japan by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 29, 2016 9:28 AM CUT  Anti U.S Airbase protesters gather during the demonstration to oppose the relocation of a U.S. Airbase in Okinawa in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan on June 26, 2016. Anti U.S Airbase protesters gather during the demonstration to oppose the relocation of a U.S. Airbase in Okinawa in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan on June 26, 2016.Richard Atrero de Guzman—Anadolu Agency/Getty Images by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 29, 2016 9:28 AM CUT The U.S. military announced Friday that it will soon give back one-sixth of the land it occupies in Okinawa, marking the largest return of land since 1972 from its military base on the Japanese island. American forces will return 4,000 hectares of land to Japan once the construction of new helipads has been completed, Reuters reports. The move comes amid widespread [protests](http://time.com/4374184/okinawa-protest-us-military/ "undefined") against the U.S. presence on Okinawa, after an American civilian working on the base was arrested over the murder of a local woman. Protesters blocked further construction on the helipads, with work only [resuming](http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/07/22/national/politics-diplomacy/central-government-sues-okinawa-futenma-relocation/#.V5sU1pOrhBc "undefined") a week ago and sparking fresh demonstrations. Although the land-return deal was agreed upon in 1996, the local agitations have prevented it from being carried out. “We are respectful of the feelings of Okinawans that our footprint must be reduced,” Lieutenant General Lawrence D. Nicholson, the commander of U.S. troops on the island, said in a statement on Friday. **Read next:** [_The Tense Relationship Between Japan and the U.S. Military_](http://time.com/4360940/us-military-navy-japan-okinawa-alcohol-bases/ "undefined") Nicholson had declared a 30-day mourning period after the murder and briefly instituted an [alcohol ban](http://time.com/4385104/us-navy-okinawa-alcohol-ban-lifted/ "undefined") on U.S. troops following the subsequent arrest of a sailor for drunk driving. The U.S. currently houses 30,000 military personnel in Okinawa, one of the country’s main Asian hubs aimed at countering a rising China, and currently occupies about 20% of the island. \[[_Reuters_](http://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-usa-okinawa-idUSKCN1090KY "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4430243/us-military-okinawa-base-land-return-japan-protests/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4430243/us-military-okinawa-base-land-return-japan-protests/"},"headline":"U.S. Military To Return 4,000 Hectares of Land on Okinawa to Japan","datePublished":"2016-07-29T09:28:50.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T23:39:04.513Z","description":"The move comes amid widespread protests against the U.S. presence on Okinawa","url":"https://time.com/4430243/us-military-okinawa-base-land-return-japan-protests/","keywords":["Military","Murder","U.S.","Japan","protests","Drunk-driving","return","Okinawa"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ab12f88327738df/6988a048a988caf23f6b8e15/gettyimages-543122868.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rishi Iyengar","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7ab12f88327738df/6988a048a988caf23f6b8e15/gettyimages-543122868.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Protesters gather for anti-US military rally in Okinawa","caption":"Protesters gather for anti-US military rally in Okinawa","creditText":"Richard Atrero de Guzman—Anadolu Agency/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4430243/us-military-okinawa-base-land-return-japan-protests/","name":"U.S. Military To Return 4,000 Hectares of Land on Okinawa to Japan"}}]}] ```