駐留費１年延長案、政府が米に打診　バイデン政権と週内協議入り

　在日米軍駐留経費の日本側負担（思いやり予算）をめぐり、先に茂木敏充外相が米国のブリンケン国務長官と電話会談した際、現行水準のまま１年間の暫定協定を結ぶ案を打診していたことが１日、分かった。政府関係者が明らかにした。週内にもオンラインによる日米実務者協議を開き、早期妥結を目指す。
　米側はトランプ政権時に駐留経費の増額を要求し、これまで交渉が難航。日本側は大統領選の結果を見極める必要があるとして、２０２０年内の合意を見送り、２１年度予算案に２０年度とほぼ同じ２０００億円程度を暫定的に計上していた。
　１月２７日に行われた日米外相電話会談では、こうした対応を米側に説明。特別協定の期限が３月末に切れることを念頭に、茂木、ブリンケン両氏は交渉の早期合意を目指し、議論を加速させることで一致した。（2021/02/01-16:10）

Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi has proposed a provisional one-year pact with the United States that would keep Japan's costs of hosting U.S. bases and troops at the current level, it was learned Monday.
   Motegi made the proposal to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in their telephone talks Wednesday, according to Japanese government sources. Following the inauguration of new U.S. President Joe Biden last month, the two countries will hold working-level talks online as early as this week with the aim of reaching an early conclusion.
   The two sides have been struggling to sign a new bilateral pact on Japan's host-nation support, after Washington demanded an increase in Tokyo's financial burden of hosting U.S. troops under the administration of then President Donald Trump.
   Giving up on reaching an agreement during 2020 in light of the need to confirm the result of the U.S. presidential election, the Japanese government has provisionally earmarked around 200 billion yen under its fiscal 2021 draft budget to cover such costs, almost the same as the amount secured in fiscal 2020, which ends next month.
   The Japanese side explained the developments in the Motegi-Blinken phone talks, according to the sources. With the current special pact on Japan's host-nation support set to expire at the end of next month, Motegi and Blinken agreed to accelerate the bilateral negotiations, seeking to reach an accord at an early date, the sources said.