A US soldier killed two at Mount Fuji. So why must Japan apologise?

Key Facts

• The US Navy officer had killed two Japanese citizens in a car accident during a trip to Mount Fuji - the victims were an 85-year-old woman and her son-in-law, aged 54.
• Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Supporters of Ridge Alkonis, led by his wife ran a successful pressure campaign in the US for his release Few in Japan knew that Alkonis' wife Brittany and his advocates had led a successful pressure campaign in the United States for his release.
• "To do so would be to aggravate the damage to US-Japan relations at a time when there is widespread recognition in Japan that, despite its iniquities, the alliance with the United States remains essential to Japan's security," he said, adding that such cases are "unquestionably damaging".
• AN UNEQUAL RELATIONSHIP Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Protests demanding the withdrawal of US bases are a common sight in Okinawa The simmering resentment over the American military presence in Japan is a long-running theme that dates back to the post-World War Two military occupation of Japan.

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