Japan-U.S. drill to defend remote islands

Japan-U.S. drill to defend remote islands

Lt. Gen. Seiji Toriumi (R), commander of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force's Western Army, shakes hands with Lt. Gen. Roger Turner, commanding general of the U.S. Marine Corps' III Marine Expeditionary Force, during a press conference at the Marine Corps' Camp Hansen in the southern Japan island prefecture of Okinawa on June 30, 2026, the final day of the Resolute Dragon joint defense drill. A total of 9,600 GSDF and Marine Corps personnel took part in the 11-day drill, conducted in Okinawa and the southwestern Japan main island of Kyushu to strengthen capabilities to defend remote islands.

Japan-U.S. drill to defend remote islands

Japan-U.S. drill to defend remote islands

Lt. Gen. Seiji Toriumi (R), commander of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force's Western Army, shakes hands with Lt. Gen. Roger Turner, commanding general of the U.S. Marine Corps' III Marine Expeditionary Force, during a press conference at the Marine Corps' Camp Hansen in the southern Japan island prefecture of Okinawa on June 30, 2026, the final day of the Resolute Dragon joint defense drill. A total of 9,600 GSDF and Marine Corps personnel took part in the 11-day drill, conducted in Okinawa and the southwestern Japan main island of Kyushu to strengthen capabilities to defend remote islands.

U.S. secretary of the army in Japan

U.S. secretary of the army in Japan

Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani (R) shakes hands with U.S. Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Oct. 3, 2025.

Those Who'll Count In Next Trump Administration

Those Who'll Count In Next Trump Administration

File photo - United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer listens as US President Donald J. Trump makes remarks prior to the signing of the US-Japan Trade Agreement and US-Japan Digital Trade Agreement in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA on Monday, October 7, 2019. As the U.S. trade representative during President-elect Donald Trump’s first term, Lighthizer was the architect of the United States’ aggressive use of tariffs and other trade restrictions against friend and foe alike, abandoning decades of U.S. support for free trade. His trade policy revolution was subsequently embraced and expanded by the Biden administration. Lighthizer may now be on the short list for a key economic post come January, with treasury secretary mentioned as one possibility. Photo by Ron Sachs/CNP/ABACAPRESS.COM

US Sending Aircraft Carrier To Middle East As Region Braces For Iranian Retaliation

US Sending Aircraft Carrier To Middle East As Region Braces For Iranian Retaliation

Handout photo dated April 12, 2022 of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), center, the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53), left, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) guided-missile destroyer JS Kong (DDG 173), right, JMSDF Murasame-class destroyer JS Inazuma (DD 105), back left, and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG 111) are underway in formation during a U.S.-Japan bilateral exercise in the Sea of Japan. The US is sending a carrier strike group, a fighter squadron and additional warships to the Middle East as the region braces for an Iranian retaliation to the killing of a senior Hamas leader in Tehran earlier this week. On Friday August 2, 2024, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group to replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt strike group, which is currently operating in the Gulf of Oman, according to a statement from Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh. U.S. Navy photo by

US Sending Aircraft Carrier To Middle East As Region Braces For Iranian Retaliation

US Sending Aircraft Carrier To Middle East As Region Braces For Iranian Retaliation

Handout photo dated February 16, 2022 of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG 111) are underway in formation with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) Murasame-class destroyer JS Inazuma (DD 105) and the training vessel Hatakaze-class JS Hatakaze (TV 3520) during exercise Jungle Warfare 2022 (JWX 22) in the Philippine Sea. The US is sending a carrier strike group, a fighter squadron and additional warships to the Middle East as the region braces for an Iranian retaliation to the killing of a senior Hamas leader in Tehran earlier this week. On Friday August 2, 2024, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group to replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt strike group, which is currently operating in the Gulf of Oman, according to a statement from Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh. U.S. Navy photo by Mas

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Photo taken on May 12, 2024, in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, shows a collapsed tunnel inside an underground shelter used by the Imperial Japanese Army's 32nd Army as its headquarters during the Battle of Okinawa in southern Japan during World War II. The shelter was shown to the media the same day, ahead of the 79th anniversary of the end of a major ground battle on the island against U.S. troops on June 23. (Pool photo)

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Photo taken on April 25, 2024, in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, shows glass bottles found inside an underground shelter used by the Imperial Japanese Army's 32nd Army as its headquarters during the Battle of Okinawa in southern Japan during World War II. The shelter was shown to the media the same day, ahead of the 79th anniversary of the end of a major ground battle on the island against U.S. troops on June 23. (Pool photo)

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Photo taken on May 12, 2024, in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, shows the interior of an underground shelter used by the Imperial Japanese Army's 32nd Army as its headquarters during the Battle of Okinawa in southern Japan during World War II. The shelter was shown to the media the same day, ahead of the 79th anniversary of the end of a major ground battle on the island against U.S. troops on June 23.

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Photo taken on April 25, 2024, in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, shows the interior of an underground shelter used by the Imperial Japanese Army's 32nd Army as its headquarters during the Battle of Okinawa in southern Japan during World War II. The shelter was shown to the media the same day, ahead of the 79th anniversary of the end of a major ground battle on the island against U.S. troops on June 23.

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Wartime underground army headquarters in Okinawa

Photo taken on May 12, 2024, in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, shows the interior of an underground shelter used by the Imperial Japanese Army's 32nd Army as its headquarters during the Battle of Okinawa in southern Japan during World War II. The shelter was shown to the media the same day, ahead of the 79th anniversary of the end of a major ground battle on the island against U.S. troops on June 23. (Pool photo)

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

DC-Whitehouse. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan review the U.S. Army old guard during a White House visit on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Photo by Haiyun Jiang/Pool/ABACAPRESS.COM

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

DC-Whitehouse. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan review the U.S. Army old guard during a White House visit on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Photo by Haiyun Jiang/Pool/ABACAPRESS.COM

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

DC-Whitehouse. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan review the U.S. Army old guard during a White House visit on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Photo by Haiyun Jiang/Pool/ABACAPRESS.COM

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

DC-Whitehouse. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan review the U.S. Army old guard during a White House visit on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Photo by Haiyun Jiang/Pool/ABACAPRESS.COM

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

DC-Whitehouse. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan review the U.S. Army old guard during a White House visit on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Photo by Haiyun Jiang/Pool/ABACAPRESS.COM

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

President Biden Welcomes Prime Minister Kishida - Washington

DC-Whitehouse. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan review the U.S. Army old guard during a White House visit on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Photo by Haiyun Jiang/Pool/ABACAPRESS.COM

Lisbon Maru rescue remembered amid Chinese New Year celebrations

STORY: Lisbon Maru rescue remembered amid Chinese New Year celebrations SHOOTING TIME: Feb. 24, 2024 DATELINE: March 4, 2024 LENGTH: 00:03:06 LOCATION: London CATEGORY: POLITICS SHOTLIST: 1. various of commemorative event for the Lisbon Maru rescue 2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): WU BUWEI, Family member of one of the Chinese fishermen from Zhoushan 3. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): SIMON PENNY, Relative of Lisbon Maru POWs STORYLINE: The Chinese Embassy in the United Kingdom (UK) has held a special reception in Gloucester for families of the Lisbon Maru survivors to commemorate the rescue in WWII and celebrate the Chinese Lantern Festival and the Chinese New Year. In October 1942, "Lisbon Maru," a cargo vessel requisitioned by the Japanese army to carry more than 1,800 British prisoners of war (POWs) from Hong Kong to Japan, was hit by the U.S. army off the Zhoushan Islands in China's Zhejiang Province. Local fishermen risked their own lives and rescued over 300 POWs. In his remarks delivered at the reception in the c

New commander of U.S. Army Japan

New commander of U.S. Army Japan

Maj. Gen. Dave Womack (2nd from L) attends a change-of-command ceremony at Camp Zama in Zama in Kanagawa Prefecture, eastern Japan, on June 20, 2023, as he takes command of U.S. Army Japan.

New commander of U.S. Army Japan

New commander of U.S. Army Japan

Maj. Gen. Dave Womack speaks after taking command of U.S. Army Japan at Camp Zama in Zama in Kanagawa Prefecture, eastern Japan, on June 20, 2023.

Trump in Japan

Trump in Japan

TOKYO, Japan, May 26 Kyodo - A helicopter carrying U.S. President Donald Trump departs Akasaka Press Center, a U.S. Army facility in Tokyo, on May 26, 2019, heading to Mobara Country Club in Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo. Trump was scheduled to play golf with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe later in the day -- their fifth round of golf together since the U.S. leader took office in 2017.

Trump in Japan

Trump in Japan

TOKYO, Japan, May 26 Kyodo - U.S. President Donald Trump (R) prepares to board a helicopter at Akasaka Press Center, a U.S. Army facility in Tokyo, on May 26, 2019. The helicopter was bound for the Mobara Country Club in Chiba Prefecture near Tokyo, where Trump was scheduled to play golf with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe later in the day -- their fifth round of golf together since the U.S. leader took office in 2017.

U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Milley

U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Milley

TOKYO, Japan, Feb. 19 Kyodo - U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley (L) holds talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Feb. 19, 2018.

Military papers on Hiroshima A-bombing damage found

Military papers on Hiroshima A-bombing damage found

HIROSHIMA, Japan - A series of books chronicling damage caused by the 1945 U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima are shown on Jan. 6, 2015, in the western Japanese city. One of the books quotes a memo written by Bunro Saeki, commander at the now defunct Imperial Japanese Army's shipping command, which is believed to be based on written army rescue operation orders found recently at a Defense Ministry institute in Tokyo.

Mock Japan army notices passed out on war anniversary

Mock Japan army notices passed out on war anniversary

OSAKA, Japan - A member of a civic organization advocating women's rights and peace hands out mock "akagami" (red paper) army induction notices to senior high school students in front of Namba Station in Osaka, western Japan, on Dec. 8, 2014, the 73rd anniversary of the launch of World War II in the Pacific theater triggered by the country's attack on Pearl Harbor in the U.S. state of Hawaii.

A-bomb survivor to visit NY for nuke-free appeal

A-bomb survivor to visit NY for nuke-free appeal

OSAKA, Japan - Masakazu Saito, 90, tells of his experience in surviving the 1945 U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima at his home in Hanamaki, Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, in October 2014, hoping to visit New York next spring to appeal for an end to nuclear arms. Saito, then an Imperial Japanese Army second lieutenant, was severely injured at a military barracks some 1.8 kilometers from the epicenter in downtown Hiroshima.

GSDF, U.S. Army conduct exercise in Hokkaido

GSDF, U.S. Army conduct exercise in Hokkaido

SAPPORO, Japan - The opening ceremony of a joint exercise by Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force and the U.S. Army is held in Chitose, Hokkaido, northern Japan, on Oct. 27, 2014.

GSDF, U.S. Army conduct exercise in Hokkaido

GSDF, U.S. Army conduct exercise in Hokkaido

SAPPORO, Japan - U.S. Army soldiers attend the opening ceremony of a joint exercise with Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force in Chitose, Hokkaido Prefecture in northern Japan, on Oct. 27, 2014.

Citizens protest deployment of X-band radar system in Kyoto

Citizens protest deployment of X-band radar system in Kyoto

KYOTO, Japan - A group of citizens gather in front of the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force's Kyogamisaki camp on the Japan Sea coast in Kyotango, Kyoto Prefecture, western Japan, on Oct. 22, 2014, to protest the formation of a U.S. Army company tasked with operating an X-band radar early warning system for missile launches.

U.S. Army forms missile defense radar unit in Japan

U.S. Army forms missile defense radar unit in Japan

KYOTO, Japan - A U.S. Army company tasked with operating an X-band radar early warning system for missile launches is inaugurated in a ceremony at the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force's Kyogamisaki camp on the Japan Sea coast in Kyotango, Kyoto Prefecture, western Japan, on Oct. 22, 2014.

Japan army chief vows work with U.S. for rule of law in Asia

Japan army chief vows work with U.S. for rule of law in Asia

WASHINGON, United States - Gen. Kiyofumi Iwata, chief of staff of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force, pledges to work with the U.S. Army to ensure the rule of law in the Asia-Pacific region during a speech in Washington on Oct. 14, 2014.

Japanese-American MIS veteran talks experience in WWII

Japanese-American MIS veteran talks experience in WWII

HONOLULU, United States - Takejiro Higa talks about his work at the Military Intelligence Service of the U.S. Army during World War II in an interview in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Aug. 10, 2014. As part of his assignment, he was stationed in Okinawa, Japan, in his father's hometown, where he spent his childhood from two to 16 years old.

Buddhist priest recalls tragedy of WWII ship sunk by U.S.

Buddhist priest recalls tragedy of WWII ship sunk by U.S.

SAPPORO, Japan - Masayoshi Asahi, a Buddhist priest in Akkeshi, eastern Hokkaido, shown in this file photo taken on June 26, 2014, remembers chanting sutras for some 2,800 victims of the Imperial Japanese Army's freighter Nichiren Maru, sunk by a U.S. submarine attack off the town in March 1944 during World War II.

Cape looking out Pacific site of WWII ship sunk by U.S.

Cape looking out Pacific site of WWII ship sunk by U.S.

SAPPORO, Japan - A young couple stands on a lookout platform on Aug. 9, 2014, at Cape Aikappu in Akkeshi, eastern Hokkaido, overlooking the Pacific Ocean where the Imperial Japanese Army's freighter Nichiren Maru was sunk by a U.S. submarine attack in March 1944 during World War II, killing some 2,800 people aboard.

Novel on U.S. POW's life in Japan becomes bestseller

Novel on U.S. POW's life in Japan becomes bestseller

NEW YORK, Japan - The novel "UNBROKEN," based on the late U.S. Army Air Forces Lieutenant Louis Zamperini's experience as a prisoner of war in Japan during World War II, has been on the New York Times bestseller list for a long period of time.

Cadets at West Point

Cadets at West Point

NEW YORK, United States - Liana Blatnik (L), Askia Mapp (C) and Tsuyoshi Hyogo (R) are photographed Nov. 8, 2013, at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in the state of New York. They set up a Japan Club to increase opportunities to learn Japanese language and culture at the army training school.

New U.S. Army commander in Japan

New U.S. Army commander in Japan

YOKOHAMA, Japan - U.S. Army Maj. Gen. James Boozer speaks during a ceremony in which he took command of the U.S. Army in Japan, at Camp Zama in Kanagawa Prefecture near Tokyo on Aug. 6, 2013. Boozer replaced Maj. Gen. Michael Harrison.

GSDF counterterrorism unit

GSDF counterterrorism unit

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Officials from Japan and the United States join hands during a ceremony marking the relocation of the headquarters of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force's counterterrorism unit from Tokyo to the U.S. Army's Camp Zama in Kanagawa Prefecture, southwest of Tokyo, that began operations March 26, 2013.

GSDF counterterrorism unit

GSDF counterterrorism unit

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - Photo shows the new headquarters of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force's counterterrorism unit that began operations March 26, 2013, at the U.S. Army's Camp Zama in Kanagawa Prefecture, southwest of Tokyo, completing its relocation from the capital.

U.S. forces open medical drill to media

U.S. forces open medical drill to media

SAGAMIHARA, Japan - U.S. Army soldiers conduct a medical exercise at a field hospital set up at a depot in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, which was opened to the media, on Aug. 28, 2012.

Disaster mitigation drill for Tokyo quake

Disaster mitigation drill for Tokyo quake

TOKYO, Japan - Members of Japan's Self-Defense Forces and U.S. forces hold a joint disaster reduction drill at the Ground Self-Defense Force Eastern Army's Asaka garrison on July 19, 2012, in simulation of a major quake hitting the Tokyo metropolitan area.

Disaster mitigation drill for Tokyo quake

Disaster mitigation drill for Tokyo quake

TOKYO, Japan - Members of Japan's Self-Defense Forces and U.S. forces hold a joint disaster reduction drill at the Ground Self-Defense Force Eastern Army's Asaka garrison on July 19, 2012, in simulation of a major quake hitting the Tokyo metropolitan area.

Annual Japan-U.S. bilateral exercise

Annual Japan-U.S. bilateral exercise

ITAMI, Japan - Ground Self-Defense Force Lt. Gen. Ryuichiro Arakawa (R), commander of the Middle Army headquarters, and U.S. Army Pacific Commander Lt. Gen. Francis Wiewcinski shake hands at the GSDF's Middle Army headquarters in Itami, Hyogo Prefecture, on Jan. 30, 2012, during an annual bilateral exercise between the U.S. Army Pacific and Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force. The 2012 Yama Sakura 61, which primarily focuses on planning, coordination and interoperability of ground based elements of the Japan-U.S. security alliance, runs through Feb. 5, 2012.

Annual Japan-U.S. bilateral exercise

Annual Japan-U.S. bilateral exercise

ITAMI, Japan - A ceremony to officially open an annual bilateral exercise between the U.S. Army Pacific and Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force is conducted at the GSDF's Middle Army headquarters in Itami, Hyogo Prefecture, on Jan. 30, 2012. The 2012 Yama Sakura 61, which primarily focuses on planning, coordination and interoperability of ground based elements of the Japan-U.S. security alliance, runs through Feb. 5, 2012.

Disaster relief work by U.S. troops

Disaster relief work by U.S. troops

TOKYO, Japan - U.S. Army personnel stationed in Japan remove debris in quake- and tsunami-hit Higashimatsushima, Miyagi Prefecture, in April 2011.

New U.S. Army training facility

New U.S. Army training facility

YOKOHAMA, Japan - Maj. Randall G. Baucom gives explanations as the U.S. Army showed to reporters its new training facility in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, on July 8, 2011. The facility to conduct computer simulation drills on war and disasters will open Aug. 4.

New U.S. Army training facility

New U.S. Army training facility

YOKOHAMA, Japan - The U.S. Army shows to reporters its new training facility in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, on July 8, 2011. The facility to conduct computer simulation drills on war and disasters will open Aug. 4.

U.S. soldiers engage in recovery work in Miyagi

U.S. soldiers engage in recovery work in Miyagi

HIGASHIMATSUSHIMA, Japan - U.S. Army soldiers stationed in Japan are engaged in recovery work at Nobiru Station on the JR Senseki Line in Higashimatsushima, Miyagi Prefecture, on April 21, 2011. Around 40 U.S. soldiers from Camp Zama in Kanagawa Prefecture and 16 members of Japan's Self-Defense Forces began removing rubble at the station. The U.S. forces and the SDF will also work on the recovery of neighboring Rikuzenono Station. Both stations were damaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

U.S. soldiers engage in recovery work in Miyagi

U.S. soldiers engage in recovery work in Miyagi

HIGASHIMATSUSHIMA, Japan - U.S. Army soldiers stationed in Japan are engaged in recovery work at Nobiru Station on the JR Senseki Line in Higashimatsushima, Miyagi Prefecture, on April 21, 2011. Around 40 U.S. soldiers from Camp Zama in Kanagawa Prefecture and 16 members of Japan's Self-Defense Forces began removing rubble at the station. The U.S. forces and the SDF will also work on the recovery of neighboring Rikuzenono Station. Both stations were damaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

Japan-U.S. 'sakura' alliance

Japan-U.S. 'sakura' alliance

TOKYO, Japan - Gen. Yoshifumi Hibako (L), chief of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force, and Gen. George Casey, chief of staff of the U.S. Army, shake hands at the Japanese Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Dec. 21, 2010, after a ''sakura'' tree planting ceremony. Hibako said he hoped bilateral relations will grow like the symbolic tree of Japan.