Japan to admit secret U.S. nuke pact

TOKYO, Nov. 22 (UPI) -- Japanese officials have decided to admit the country has had a secret nuclear weapons pact with the United States since 1960, sources say.

Citing unnamed Foreign Ministry sources, the Kyodo News Agency reported Sunday that after decades of denying such an agreement existed, the new government under the Democratic Party of Japan is preparing to admit Tokyo has long allowed nuclear-armed U.S. military aircraft and ships to make stopovers in the country without prior consultation.

Kyodo's sources said an in-house investigation by DPJ officials has unearthed documents suggesting the agreement has existed as a secret codicil of a 1960 bilateral security agreement with the United States, which officially states Japan must be consulted before nuclear weapons are allowed on its soil.

Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada said Saturday the probe is nearing its conclusion, but refused to disclose any details.