Tokyo, April 13 (RHC)-- A newly-released poll shows an overwhelming majority of residents on the Japanese island of Okinawa are against the relocation of a controversial U.S. military base there. The survey published by the newspaper Japan Times revealed that 76.1 percent of Okinawa residents are against “the construction of a new base” in the Henoko district of the southern city of Nago as a replacement for the U.S. Futenma base.

In addition, the poll showed a majority of residents, 83 percent, support Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga, who has vowed to use every available means to stop the relocation plan.

The U.S. has had a major military presence in Okinawa since the end of World War II. About half of the 50,000 American military personnel in Japan are stationed on the island. The deadlock over the base has been a major source of tension between Tokyo and Washington since 1996 when the two governments agreed on the original plan to move the base.