Hokkaido Toyako Summit

Shuri Castle

At the beginning of the 15th century, the first united Ryuku Kingdom was born on Okinawa. A coup d'état in 1469 brought an end to the First Sho Dynasty, then the Second Sho Dynasty was established in the following year and continued until the 19th century. At the start of the Meiji Era, the kingdom first became the Ryuku Domain, and then in 1879 it was reborn as Okinawa Prefecture.

During the Second World War, Okinawa was the only part of the Japanese home islands to experience major ground battles. After the war it was placed under U.S. administration, before being returned to Japan in 1972. Since Okinawa's reincorporation into Japan, the Japanese Government has promoted the improvement of social capital in the interests of Okinawa's further rehabilitation and development.