Okinawa, Japan's only subtropical prefecture, has long been popular with tourists who flock to the island for its warm weather, pristine beaches and turquoise seas.

But beyond the picturesque Pacific landscapes and visitors enjoying water sports, the islands are also known for the heavy US military presence since the end of World War II.

Tokyo views the more than 30 US military facilities that cover around 25% of Okinawan land as crucial to safeguarding national and regional security and underpinning the US-Japanese alliance.

To many Okinawans, however, the US presence feels more like a painful legacy of an occupation that keeps the island and its residents in chains.

A history of anti-base sentiment

Just weeks before my trip to Okinawa, multiple sexual assault allegations against US military personnel were exposed.

The reports brought up painful memories of the 1995 gang rape of a 12-year-old Okinawan girl by three US soldiers.

Over 80,000 Okinawans took to the streets at the time to protest the US military's presence.

The arrest of a US national suspected of killing a local woman in 2016 also sparked massive protests.

Under intense pressure, Japan agreed a deal with the US to return the land used by the Futenma Air Base to Okinawa. While about 4,000 members of the US Marine Corps have been transferred to Guam, thousands more remain, and the return of the land is still very much a pipe dream for Okinawans.

When I passed by the site at Henoko Bay, about a dozen protesters had braved the rain to stage a sit-in against the military facilities. Senaga Kazuo, one of the protesters, said they come every weekday to "prevent the expansion of US bases."

"Women in Okinawa were sexually assaulted; Kadena and Futenma [bases] created a lot of noise…US [soldiers] come to Okinawa for the US, not for Japan or Okinawa," he told me.

A public poll from two local universities in 2023 showed that 70% of Okinawans found the concentration of US military bases in the prefecture to be unfair. 

Despite the public discontent, US and Japan's defense cooperation is as strong as ever. In February, US President Donald Trump's administration renewed the security pact with Japan amid the growing threat from North Korea and escalating tensions between China and Taiwan. 

Do the US bases protect Okinawa?

Expecting the same anger from other locals, I headed into Okinawa's main city Naha. The people I spoke to there, however, were mostly indifferent to the US military — with some even supportive. 

A female shopkeeper at a local jewelry stand, who preferred to remain anonymous — a sign of the sensitivity of the issue among locals — told me that she thinks the US would protect them if a war breaks out. 

This view was shared by fashion store worker Ms Kina, who also withheld her first name. She told me that she used to hate the US military, but now she hopes it can protect the island in potential conflicts.

Despite the anger provoked by the sexual assault cases and crimes committed by some American soldiers, some Okinawans still don't want the US forces to leave.

"Violence happens everywhere, but it's not a reason to drive anyone away," Meikawa Suiko, a silver-haired restaurant owner, told me.

While the US-Japan pact ensures the American military would help defend Japan, would local Okinawans be a priority for protection?

Kozue Akibayashi, professor at the Doshisha University specializing in militarism and gender, told me that's a false narrative that the Japanese government has long fed Okinawans. 

"The US military is not here to protect the Okinawans. But [the narrative] is like a fantasy floating around … It's a very deep-rooted myth, not only with Okinawans, but worldwide — that militarization is the only method to assure your safety," she said. 

Akibayashi cited the failed evacuation plan right before the US invasion at the Battle of Okinawa in 1945 that resulted in 100,000 civilian deaths. "Those [plans] didn't work and [Okinawans] were not prioritized," she said. 

In late March, Japan launched a plan on how to evacuate some 120,000 people from Okinawa in case of a war involving China, which has multiple disputes in the region, including over Taiwan and the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands which are claimed by Tokyo, Beijing and Taipei.

The US bases do make Okinawa a target for China, according to Paul O'Shea, senior lecturer at the Centre for East and Southeast Asian Studies at Sweden's Lund University.

"There are hundreds, maybe thousands of Chinese missiles trained on US bases on Okinawa. This is a well-understood and inevitable cost of the bases," he told me.

However, O'Shea pointed out that the bases also have a deterrent effect and "contribute to maintaining the peace."

Economic burden or lifeline?

In addition to the security and diplomatic benefits, the Japanese government says the US military bases in Okinawa are justified because of the economic lifeline they provide to the region.

Despite its popularity with tourists, Okinawa is Japan's poorest prefecture. Average incomes are only 70% of the national average and job opportunities are limited, contributing to a poverty rate of 35%. 

The prefecture, which accounts for less than 1% of Japan's total land area, hosts around 29,000 American soldiers, over 70% of the total stationed in the East Asian country.

Japan currently pays $1.4 billion (€1.24 billion) to the US on average each year for the troops and bases, the biggest overseas deployment of American troops. Trump has been pushing Tokyo to pay even more.

Despite these issues, the bases in Okinawa have created jobs and economic benefits for the islands: the American Village shopping district generates 33.6 billion yen (about $231 million, €205 million), while over 3,300 people are employed in the area, according to government data from 2015.

Wataru Nishino, who works at a tourist center near the American Village, told me that these benefits do help boost America's image, especially among young people who "don't have such bad impressions of the US military because we have more chances to get to know them."

"My friend's father works on the base, while another is mixed race [of Japanese and American descent]. They create job opportunities for us — if our English is good we can work on the base," he said. 

But Okinawa's mayor Denny Tamaki, an opponent of the bases, has said that the jobs they provide only contribute to about 5% of Okinawans' income, while the land the bases occupy, if returned, could generate nearly $7 billion (€6.2 billion).

"Why is Okinawa the poorest prefecture? The land, labor and resources spent on maintaining the bases could have been used in other more productive ways, and over time, Okinawa's economy could have grown beyond the bases," O'Shea said.

Edited by: Karl Sexton