Search｜Photos & Images & Videos｜KYODO NEWS IMAGES INC

MSDF vessel guards commercial ship off Somalia

TOKYO, Japan - A vessel of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (front) guards a Japanese cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia against piracy in June 2009. Japan plans to send a senior Self-Defense Forces officer to serve as the commander of the multinational antipiracy operations in the Gulf of Aden.

E

Japan MSDF relief ship in Philippines

CEBU, Philippines - Rear Adm. Hisanori Sato (L front) of Japan's Self-Defense Forces and the Philippine's regional military commander Lt. Gen. Roy Deveraturda shake hands at a Philippine military base in Cebu Province on Nov. 22, 2013. A Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force vessel carrying the bulk of SDF personnel to join emergency response and relief operations teams in the typhoon-hit Philippines arrived on Cebu Island, near the worst-hit island of Leyte.

E

U.S.-Japan landing drill

SAN DIEGO, United States - Two air cushion landing craft of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force head to San Clemente Island (back) off San Diego, California, during a U.S.-Japan joint landing drill on June 17, 2013. The U.S. forces and Japan's Self Defense-Forces were jointly training for the recapture of remote islands.

E

U.S.-Japan landing drill

SAN DIEGO, United States - An air cushion landing craft (back), released from the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force transport vessel Shimokita (front), heads to San Clemente Island off San Diego, California, during a U.S.-Japan joint landing drill on June 17, 2013. The U.S. forces and Japan's Self Defense-Forces were jointly training for the recapture of remote islands.

E

U.S.-Japan landing drill

SAN DIEGO, United States - An air cushion landing craft of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force lands on San Clemente Island off San Diego, California, during a U.S.-Japan joint landing drill on June 17, 2013. The U.S. forces and Japan's Self Defense-Forces were jointly training for the recapture of remote islands.

E

U.S.-Japan landing drill

SAN DIEGO, United States - An air cushion landing craft of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force lands on San Clemente Island off San Diego, California, during a U.S.-Japan joint landing drill on June 17, 2013. The U.S. forces and Japan's Self Defense-Forces were jointly training for the recapture of remote islands.

E

U.S.-Japan landing drill

SAN DIEGO, United States - Photo taken from a helicopter of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force shows an air cushion landing craft, released from the Maritime Self-Defense Force transport vessel Shimokita, heading to San Clemente Island off San Diego, California, during a U.S.-Japan joint landing drill on June 17, 2013. U.S. forces and Japan's Self Defense-Forces were jointly training for the recapture of remote islands.

E

U.S.-Japan landing drill

SAN DIEGO, United States - An air cushion landing craft of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force lands on San Clemente Island off San Diego, California, during a U.S.-Japan joint landing drill on June 17, 2013. The U.S. forces and Japan's Self Defense-Forces were jointly training for the recapture of remote islands.

E

MV-22 Osprey lands on Japanese destroyer for 1st time

SAN DIEGO, United States - U.S. military and Japanese Ground, Maritime and Air Self-Defense Forces officers meet on the Japanese helicopter destroyer Hyuga off San Diego, California, on June 14, 2013. The U.S. Marine Corps landed an MV-22 Osprey on the Hyuga the same day, the first landing of the tilt-rotor aircraft on a Japanese vessel, during a joint exercise involving the U.S. military and Japan's Self-Defense Forces.

E

Japan-U.S. joint naval drill

TOKYO, Japan - Rear Adm. Dan Cloyd (R), commander of the U.S. Navy's Carrier Strike Group 5, speaks to reporters on the carrier George Washington in the Pacific near Minamidaito Island in Okinawa Prefecture on Dec. 9, 2010, during a joint drill with the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. Standing beside Cloyd is Rear Adm. Umio Otsuka, commander of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's Escort Flotilla 2. (Pool photo)

E

MSDF ship collides with S. Korean vessel in Kammon Straits

FUKUOKA, Japan - A fire blazes on the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Forces destroyer Kurama after it collided with a South Korean container ship in the Kammon Straits between Yamaguchi and Fukuoka prefectures on Oct. 27, 2009. The fire was brought under control, but the destroyer could not navigate by itself or drop anchor as its bow was damaged badly.

E

MSDF ship collides with S. Korean container in Kammon Straits

TOKYO, Japan - Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa speaks at a news conference at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Oct. 27, 2009, after the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Forces destroyer Kurama collided with a South Korean container ship in the Kammon Straits in Fukuoka Prefecture. The 5,200-ton destroyer caught fire following the collision and three crew members were slightly injured.

E

Japan's largest 'helicopter carrier' commissioned amid concerns

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Women personnel board the Hyuga, the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's largest helicopter-carrying destroyer, in a ceremony for the vessel to be commissioned at a shipyard in Yokohama March 18. The Hyuga has women officers and sailors on board a destroyer for the first time since the establishment of the Self-Defense Forces in 1954.

E

Koike wants mission to back Afghan antiterror campaign extended

TOKYO, Japan - Defense Minister Yuriko Koike speaks in a group interview with Kyodo News and several other Japanese news organizations at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on July 11. Koike expressed the desire to extend the Maritime Self-Defense Force's mission to refuel U.S.-led coalition forces in the Indian Ocean in support of the antiterrorism campaign in Afghanistan beyond the current expiration date of Nov. 1.

E

MSDF minesweeper tender arrives in Karachi

KARACHI, Pakistan - Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force's (MSDF) minesweeper tender Uraga, which is on a mission to deliver relief supplies for Afghan refugees, is anchored at Karachi port Dec. 12. The 5,650-ton Uraga set sail from Japan on Nov. 25 with two other ships, marking the first time for a Japanese military contingent to provide assistance to combat forces since the end of World War II.

E

Japan's MSDF explodes underwater mines off Kobe

KOBE, Japan - A minesweeping unit of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) explodes on Oct. 5 four underwater mines which are believed to have been dropped off Kobe by the U.S. armed forces during World War II. The mines were found at the 17-meter-deep seabed near the construction site of the planned Kobe airport.

E

MSDF minesweeper tender arrives in Karachi

KARACHI, Pakistan - Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force's (MSDF) minesweeper tender Uraga, which is on a mission to deliver relief supplies for Afghan refugees, is anchored at Karachi port Dec. 12. The 5,650-ton Uraga set sail from Japan on Nov. 25 with two other ships, marking the first time for a Japanese military contingent to provide assistance to combat forces since the end of World War II.

E

Abe addresses MSDF antiterrorism mission in Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI, Abu Dhabi - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe inspects the the Maritime Self-Defense Force supply vessel Hamana oberthed at an Abu Dhabi port on April 29. Abe told the crew he hopes they will help ''write a new chapter for Japan on the frontlines of international contribution,'' referring to the recent upgrading of the Self-Defense Forces' overseas activities into one of its primary duties from previous subordinate status. (Pool photo) (Kyodo)

E

Abe addresses MSDF antiterrorism mission in Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI, Abu Dhabi - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (center right) inspects the the Maritime Self-Defense Force supply vessel Hamana oberthed at an Abu Dhabi port on April 29. Abe told the crew he hopes they will help ''write a new chapter for Japan on the frontlines of international contribution,'' referring to the recent upgrading of the Self-Defense Forces' overseas activities into one of its primary duties from previous subordinate status. (Pool photo) (Kyodo)

E

Koike wants mission to back Afghan antiterror campaign extended

TOKYO, Japan - Defense Minister Yuriko Koike speaks in a group interview with Kyodo News and several other Japanese news organizations at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on July 11. Koike expressed the desire to extend the Maritime Self-Defense Force's mission to refuel U.S.-led coalition forces in the Indian Ocean in support of the antiterrorism campaign in Afghanistan beyond the current expiration date of Nov. 1. (Kyodo)

E

Japan's largest 'helicopter carrier' commissioned amid concerns

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Women personnel board the Hyuga, the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's largest helicopter-carrying destroyer, in a ceremony for the vessel to be commissioned at a shipyard in Yokohama March 18. The Hyuga has women officers and sailors on board a destroyer for the first time since the establishment of the Self-Defense Forces in 1954. (Kyodo)

E

Japan begins antipiracy mission off Somalia, escorts 5 ships

TOKYO, Japan - The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Sazanami is seen moving in the Gulf of Aden on March 30. The vessel is one of two Japanese destroyers that began an antipiracy mission off the coast of Somalia the same day, marking the start of the first such mission abroad for the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. The other Japanese destroyer is the 4,550-ton Samidare. (Courtesy of the Defense Ministry)(Kyodo)

E

Japan, Portugal vow to cooperate in security, economy

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (far R) confers with his Portuguese counterpart Pedro Coelho (far L) in Tokyo on March 27, 2015. They agreed to cooperate in ensuring maritime security and reaching a broad accord this year on the proposed Economic Partnership Agreement between Japan and the European Union, and to dispatch as an observer a Japanese Self-Defense Forces team to a NATO exercise that Lisbon will host this fall. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

E

Japan, Philippines engage in joint military exercises

A Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force P3C patrol plane takes off from an airport in Puerto Princesa on Palawan Island in the western Philippines on June 23, 2015, to participate in joint exercises with Philippine forces in the face of China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

E

Japan, Philippines engage in joint military exercises

Personnel of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force and Philippine forces climb aboard the MSDF's P3C patrol plane at an airport in Puerto Princesa on Palawan Island in the western Philippine on June 23, 2015, to participate in joint exercises with Philippine forces in the face of China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

E

U.S. places high hopes on expanded SDF role

Vice Adm. Robert Thomas (L), commander of the U.S. 7th Fleet, and Vice Adm. Eiichi Funada, commander of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force fleet, hold a joint press conference on the deck of the USS Blue Ridge in Yokohama southwest of Tokyo on March 31, 2015. Thomas welcomed Japan's planned security legislation that will expand the scope of overseas operations by the Self-Defense Forces. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

E

India-Japan-U.S. naval drill in Indian Ocean shown to press

The Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Fuyuzuki (back) sails in parallel with the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Bay of Bengal during a joint naval drill involving Japanese, Indian and U.S. forces on Oct. 17, 2015. (Pool photo by Asahi Shimbun) (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

E

Japanese, U.S. military bands jointly perform in Washington

Petty Officer Third Class Yukari Miyake (foreground) of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force sings with accompaniment by Japanese and U.S. military bands during a ceremony at the Japanese ambassador's residence in Washington on Oct. 5, 2015. The event was held to celebrate the 61st anniversary of the Self-Defense Forces' founding and to express Japan's gratitude for the U.S. military's "Tomodachi" (Friend) rescue and support operations following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster that ravaged northeastern Japan. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

E

MSDF ship collides with S. Korean container in Kammon Straits

TOKYO, Japan - Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa speaks at a news conference at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Oct. 27, 2009, after the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Forces destroyer Kurama collided with a South Korean container ship in the Kammon Straits in Fukuoka Prefecture. The 5,200-ton destroyer caught fire following the collision and three crew members were slightly injured. (Kyodo)

E

MSDF ship collides with S. Korean vessel in Kammon Straits

FUKUOKA, Japan - A fire blazes on the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Forces destroyer Kurama after it collided with a South Korean container ship in the Kammon Straits between Yamaguchi and Fukuoka prefectures on Oct. 27, 2009. The fire was brought under control, but the destroyer could not navigate by itself or drop anchor as its bow was damaged badly. (Kyodo)

E

Japan-U.S. joint naval drill

TOKYO, Japan - Rear Adm. Dan Cloyd (R), commander of the U.S. Navy's Carrier Strike Group 5, speaks to reporters on the carrier George Washington in the Pacific near Minamidaito Island in Okinawa Prefecture on Dec. 9, 2010, during a joint drill with the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. Standing beside Cloyd is Rear Adm. Umio Otsuka, commander of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's Escort Flotilla 2. (Pool photo)(Kyodo)

E

Japan dispatches helicopter carrier Izumo to protect U.S. ships

People watch from ashore as the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force helicopter carrier Izumo leaves Yokosuka base in Kanagawa Prefecture, southwest of Tokyo, on May 1, 2017. It was Japan's first dispatch of forces to protect U.S. military vessels, amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

E

Japan's MSDF explodes underwater mines off Kobe

KOBE, Japan - A minesweeping unit of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) explodes on Oct. 5 four underwater mines which are believed to have been dropped off Kobe by the U.S. armed forces during World War II. The mines were found at the 17-meter-deep seabed near the construction site of the planned Kobe airport.