Tag - u.s.-bases

 
 

U.S. BASES

The U.S. Air Force's Kadena Air Base in Kadena, Okinawa Prefecture. Brennon Washington, who was stationed at the base, was handed a five-year prison sentence over the kidnap and sexual assault of a girl under the age of consent.
JAPAN
Sep 10, 2025
Five-year term upheld for U.S. airman over Okinawa sexual assault
A judge rejected the defense's appeal and upheld the Naha District Court's ruling in the trial of 26-year-old Brennon Washington.
A building slated for demolition that was once a clinic for sex workers hired to serve U.S. soldiers protecting Seoul from North Korea
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Sep 10, 2025
South Korean women target U.S. military in landmark forced prostitution lawsuit
Historians and activists say tens of thousands of South Korean women worked for state-sanctioned brothels from the 1950s to 1980s, serving U.S. troops stationed in the country.
U.S. President Donald Trump visits the USS Wasp aircraft carrier in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, in May 2019 during his first term as president. Trump is expected to demand that Japan boost its host-nation support spending for U.S. military when the current plan expires in March 2027.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 7, 2025
Japan braces for Trump push on U.S. troop funding
The financial support covers the salaries of workers at U.S. military bases, utilities costs and facility maintenance expenses.
U.S. military personnel join Japanese officials and residents for a one-off joint nighttime patrol on the streets of the city of Okinawa in April, following sexual assault cases involving U.S. service members.
JAPAN
Sep 5, 2025
Pentagon begins probe of crimes involving U.S. troops in Japan
The review will "examine the performance, training and criminal history of service members who committed violent crimes against Japanese nationals," according to a Pentagon memo.
Members of the Ground Self-Defense Force and the U.S. Marine Corps conduct a joint military drill on Irisuna Island in Okinawa Prefecture in November 2023.
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2025
U.S. deploys cutting-edge missile system in Okinawa
Mounted on an unmanned vehicle, the remote-control missile system can swiftly be positioned along the coastline to attack enemy ships.
Takemasa Kinjo, who was a high school student when his mother was killed by a U.S. Marine in 1974, looks on at the construction site of the new Henoko military base for U.S. forces near his residence in Nago, Okinawa Prefecture, in June.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Aug 25, 2025
Decades after WWII, Okinawa is a reluctant host for U.S. troops
A string of incidents over the years involving American troops and base personnel, including sexual assault cases, have angered residents.
The U.S. military's Marine Air Defense Integrated System is expected to be deployed in Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture.
JAPAN
Aug 21, 2025
New air defense system to be used in upcoming U.S.-Japan drill
The U.S. military's Marine Air Defense Integrated System is expected to be deployed in Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture.
Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto (left) and U.S. Ambassador to Japan Walter Mondale during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo in April 1996 announcing the decision to return to Japan the site for the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma air station in Okinawa Prefecture
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 17, 2025
Okinawa’s backers in LDP dwindle, prompting concern
At present, not many lawmakers are putting priority on Okinawa after measures taken by the government in the past for the development of the prefecture produced certain results.
The Kadena U.S. Air Force Base in Kadena, Okinawa Prefecture, in August 2023. An airman from the base was arrested last weekend for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 7, 2025
Two U.S. servicemen arrested in Okinawa over assaults
A 25-year-old airman is accused of punching his girlfriend while, separately, a 21-year-old marine allegedly put his hands around the neck of an unacquainted man.
Col. Neil Owens (right), chief of staff for the 3rd Marine Division, bows in apology at the Okinawa Prefectural Government office in Naha on Thursday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 4, 2025
U.S. military apologizes over Okinawa sexual assault case
This is the first direct apology from the U.S. military to the Okinawa Prefectural Government for a series of sexual crimes committed by U.S. servicemen in the prefecture.
According to the indictment, U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton assaulted a woman in Okinawa Prefecture for sexual purposes.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 25, 2025
U.S. Marine sentenced to seven years for sexual assault in Okinawa
U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton asserted his innocence during his trial, saying he did not try to have sex with the woman or commit violence.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks at a ceremony in the Peace Memorial Park in Itoman, Okinawa Prefecture, on Monday.
JAPAN / History
Jun 23, 2025
Okinawa marks 80th anniversary of end of ferocious ground battle
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba spoke of the horrific ground war involving Okinawan residents, noting that 200,000 lives were lost, or about one in four Okinawans.
Takeshi Yamaguchi, a professor at the University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa Prefecture, speaks during an online interview on June 3.
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2025
Okinawa remains at mercy of armed forces, says expert
The prefecture hosts many U.S. military bases, following its occupation by U.S. armed forces after Japan's defeat in the Battle of Okinawa in the closing days of World War II.
A U.S. military plane takes off at the Kadena U.S. Air Force Base in Okinawa Prefecture in August 2023.
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2025
Okinawa marks 80 years since 'Typhoon of Steel,' with U.S. presence still a burden
On June 23, Japan’s southernmost prefecture commemorates the end of the Battle of Okinawa, among the bloodiest ground battles of World War II.
The city of Naha in Okinawa Prefecture. The Naha District Court is scheduled to hand down a ruling on June 24 for a sexual assault case involving a U.S. Marine.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 9, 2025
Ten-year sentence sought for U.S. marine in Okinawa for sexual assault
The court is scheduled to hand down a ruling on June 24.
The Kadena U.S. Air Force Base in Okinawa Prefecture. An emergency call was made at around 11:15 a.m. reporting that a small-scale explosion occurred at a storage depot for unexploded shells.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 2025
Explosion at U.S. air base in Okinawa injures four
Four Ground Self-Defense Force members were injured in the incident, but none of them are in critical condition.
Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki (center) takes part in a joint patrol by the U.S. military and the Okinawa Prefectural Police in the city of Okinawa in April in response to a series of sexual assault and other incidents involving U.S. service personnel.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 2, 2025
U.S. Marine in Okinawa pleads not guilty to sexual assault
Okinawa has seen a series of sexual assault and other incidents involving U.S. military personnel since last year.
Members of the Okinawa Prefectural Police and the U.S. military conduct a joint patrol in the city of Okinawa in April. Prefectural police arrested a U.S. Marine for an alleged hit-and-run case on Sunday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 26, 2025
U.S. Marine arrested for Okinawa hit-and-run that injured four
Lance Cpl. Ivan Garcia-Martinez’s breathalyzer test showed an alcohol level approximately twice the legal limit, police said.
Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki (center) takes part in a joint patrol involving the U.S. military and the Okinawa Prefectural Police in the city of Okinawa on April 18.
JAPAN
Apr 30, 2025
U.S. forces and Okinawa officials to meet in May to address local concerns
The forum is designed to address a range of issues and improve community relations.
Okinawa Prefectural Police Headquarters in the city of Naha. Police have sent prosecutors papers on two U.S. Marines suspected of sexually assaulting women in the prefecture.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 24, 2025
U.S. Marines suspected of sexually assaulting women in Okinawa
One of the two is suspected of sexually assaulting an acquaintance in January, and the other of sexually assaulting a woman and injuring another at a military base in March.

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