Adm. Harry Harris, the head of the U.S. Pacific Command told the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington D.C. Tuesday that he does not expect the Henoko replacement facility for MCAS Futenma to be complete before 2025, two years later than envisioned before.

According to the agreement signed in 2013 between the Japanese and U.S. governments, the land of the MCAS Futenma would be returned sometime during the Japanese fiscal year of 2022, provided that the replacement facility in Henoko is complete.

Although the work has already started, the completion is all but certain as Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga has made stopping the work and preventing the construction a cornerstone of his administration policy. He insists that the facility has to be moved out of the prefecture.

At the hearing, Harris said that, ”The construction of the replacement facility is Japan’s responsibility and contractual obligation.”

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