Is Japan occupied by the U.S. because it has military bases in the country? No, that's not true: There are U.S. bases in many countries worldwide. This does not mean that they are occupied. The U.S. currently does not occupy other countries.
According to Politico, the United States still maintain nearly 800 military bases in more than 70 countries and territories abroad.
The claim appeared on a TikTok video (archived here) published on April 28, 2023. It opened:
Ladies and gentlemen, as long as there are U.S. military bases in Japan, the occupation continues.
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Fri May 12 15:34:49 2023 UTC)
The man in the video is introduced as Professor Toshio Nishi of Stanford University, Hoover Institution.
According to International Humanitarian Law Databases, a territory is considered occupied when placed under a hostile army's authority. The occupation extends only to the territory where such authority has been established and can be exercised.
A more specific definition of "Occupation" is available from the RULAC Geneva Academy website.
On September 8, 1951, the San Francisco Peace Treaty (Treaty Of Peace With Japan) was signed and on April 28, 1952, Japan got its independence.
There are US military bases in countries other than those defeated in WW2.
(Source: screenshot: https://www.acq.osd.mil/eie/Downloads/BSI/Base%20Structure%20Report%20FY18.pdf taken on Fri May 16 00:03 JST)
According to USGS (Science For A Changing World), an official website of the United States government, U.S. territories include Guam, (physically part of the Marianas Islands but politically separate), American Samoa, and U.S. Virgin Islands (which uses "U.S." in name to distinguish from neighbouring British Virgin Islands.) All of these territories are self-governed but remain subject to the U.S. Congress's plenary power.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says that Japan provides facilities and areas for use by the U.S. military to serve the purposes of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, in which the U.S. has agreed to defend Japan. In other words, "the United States has an obligation to defend Japan, and Japan has an obligation to provide facilities and areas to the United States for that purpose."
U.S. Forces Japan enables U.S. Indo-Pacific Command's efforts to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific. U.S. forces based in Japan, provide a ready and lethal capability that deters adversary aggression, protects the Homeland, aids in Japan's defence, and enhances regional peace and security.
