China and India up defense spending, spurring concerns about an Asian arms race

Tensions in the South China Sea have been high in recent years, due in large part to territorial disputes between Asian nations over the ocean waterways in the region.  China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines all have contradictory jurisdictional claims in the area, driven by military posturing and the possibility of massive oil […]

US Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey Goes Down off Coast of Japan

Monday night a US Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey went down in shallow water off Japan’s southern island of Okinawa. No one was killed in the crash landing and all five crewmembers were rescued. All crewmembers were transported to a US Navy hospital at Kadena Air Base according to a Marine Corps statement. The extent of […]

Second Okinawa Marine drowns, prompting temporary ban on swimming

Two Marines on Okinawa, Japan, have drown in as many days, prompting the III Marine Expeditionary Force to temporarily ban swimming and other water recreational activities, said III MEF spokeswoman Lt. Jacky Chow. The Marines died on Saturday and Sunday in separate incidents at Maeda Point, Chow said in an email.  A total of three […]

Watch: Recon Helo Jump – At Sea

U.S. Marines assigned to Maritime Raid Force, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit conduct jump and recovery training at sea near, White Beach , Okinawa, Short Version https://youtu.be/6TCfk6TajRQ   Long Version https://youtu.be/0dIvoANuPHU   Featured Content – DVIDS

July 4 fireworks, live bands canceled at US bases in Japan

YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — The rockets’ red glare will be absent from Independence Day celebrations at U.S. military bases in Japan this year. The decision to go low key for the most patriotic American holiday — live bands were banned, too — is an extension of the monthlong “period of unity and mourning” that […]

Tens of thousands gather to protest US military presence on Japanese island

Tens of thousands joined together Sunday in a massive protest against the presence of U.S. military bases on the southwestern Japanese island of Okinawa, where an American contractor and former Marine is accused of raping and killing a local woman. The rally calls for a review of the U.S.-Japanese security agreement, which burdens Okinawa with […]

US military in Japan agrees to restrict troops’ movements after Okinawa murder

TOKYO –  The U.S. military in Japan is restricting celebrations and off-base alcohol consumption in Okinawa after the arrest of a former Marine suspected of killing a woman on the southern Japanese island. The Marine Corps commander in Japan said Saturday the measures are not punishment but an effort to show respect for the victim’s […]

US military imposes restrictions on Okinawa troops after murder

The US military in Japan is restricting celebrations and off-base alcohol consumption in Okinawa after the arrest of a former Marine suspected of killing a woman on the southern Japanese island. The Marine Corps commander in Japan said on Saturday the measures were not punishment but an effort to show respect for the victim’s family and mourn with the […]

Okinawa Marine Corps base move on hold until 2025

TOKYO — A controversial plan to move a U.S. Marine Corps base within Okinawa in southern Japan has been pushed back by two years, America’s top military official in the Pacific said. Adm. Harry Harris, head of the U.S. Pacific Command, said Tuesday that the shift of the Futenma air station to a less congested part of Okinawa island would not happen until 2025 because work on a […]