The U.S. wants to reorganize U.S. Marine units on the Japanese island of Okinawa by 2026, arming them with missiles and lighter equipment to deter the Chinese military. The plan will be discussed with Tokyo in Washington, the Yomiuri newspaper reported.

The U.S. has already informed Japan of the reorganization, which it will announce after a two-plus-two meeting in Washington between Japan's defense and foreign ministers and their U.S. counterparts, the newspaper writes.

The creation of the new units, called Coastal Marine Regiments, is part of a major reorganization of the U.S. Marine Corps outlined by its commandant, General David Berger, in the 2020 Force Design 2030 document, Reuters notes.

At the time, Berger said he wanted the units to work closely with Japan's Self Defense Forces to prevent easy access to the Pacific for Chinese forces.

Asked about the possible deployment of the new units, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said in a regular briefing Tuesday that bilateral military cooperation between the United States and Japan should not harm the interests of third parties and regional peace and stability.

Japan hosts 18,000 U.S. Marines, the largest concentration outside the United States. Most of them are based on the main island of Okinawa.