The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) has grounded its fleet of Osprey tiltrotor aircraft after one of its V-22 Ospreys sustained damage during a failed takeoff attempt as part of the ongoing “Keen Sword 25” joint exercise with the United States.
Related:
Military officials: ‘Widowmaker’ Osprey will fly with a faulty clutch
The United States has announced it will upgrade U.S. Forces Japan (USFJ) to a joint force headquarters (JFHQ) with expanded operational responsibilities. The new command will report to the US Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). The revamped structure will assume the control of about 55,000 personnel stationed in Japan from the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command some 6,200 kilometers away in Honolulu, Hawaii. The move is intended to streamline communications between the US and Japan, especially during a crisis involving China.
Japan-U.S. joint statement on war preparations forecasts doom
Japan’s land minister has sued Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki in an effort to force the construction of a landfill needed to relocate a US base on the island, a project the majority of Okinawans oppose.
Japan Sues Okinawa Governor in Effort to Force Construction for US Base
Related:
[2019] New Military Base Increases Calls For Okinawa’s Independence
An Incomplete Report on US Military Activities in the South China Sea in 2022
In 2022, alongside the context of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the US military placed great emphasis on military deterrence against China in the South China Sea, maintaining high-intensity activities including close-in reconnaissance operations, Taiwan Strait transits, forward presence operations, strategic deterrence, freedom of navigation operations (FONOPs), military exercises and drills, and battlefield preparation.
An Incomplete Report on US Military Activities in the South China Sea in 2022 via SCSPI
A thousand-plus people joined a demonstration in Okinawa’s prefectural capital on Feb. 26 to protest the Japanese government’s plans to build up its defense capabilities on a group of islands in the country’s south for a possible contingency in Taiwan.
1,600 people march through Naha protesting Japan’s defense buildup in Okinawa
Related:
U.S., Japan, South Korea Hold Ballistic Missile Defense Drills after North Korean Launches
Read More »Marine Corps Reactivates Base On Guam
Guam’s history is marked by the enduring partnership between the U.S. military and the people of Guam. Since the establishment of Marine Barracks Guam in 1899, the Marine Corps has had a nearly continuous presence on Guam. The Marine Barracks was reactivated after World War II and deactivated November 10, 1992.
Related:
US Marines Open New Base on Guam to Prepare for Future War With China
According to Kyodo News, the new base in Guam will host 4,000 US Marines that will be transferred from Okinawa. The US and Japan agreed to reduce the military burden on Okinawa, which hosts over 70% of US bases in Japan, over local opposition to the US presence. But the plans to deploy the Marine Littoral Regiment further entrenches the military presence in the Okinawa prefecture.
There is also local opposition to the expansion of the US military presence in Guam, as Kyodo reported anti-base demonstrators protested against the opening of the new Marines Corps facility. An activist said that the military buildup will make Guam “a target for a war that we didn’t want to be part of.”
Marines officially activate Camp Blaz – Mixed feelings as late veteran honored during Asan ceremony
“They are appropriating our history and they are co-opting an identity of a CHamoru hero who, quite frankly, was very critical of the fact that we never saw true liberation here in Guam, although he was a former Marine,” Flores said. “He’s been quoted many times in saying we’re equal in only war and not in peace. They have manipulated his legacy to force a closeness and connection to this new Marine base that represents so much destruction and violence for our people. And worst off, this base makes us a bigger target for war.”
A 10-minute miscommunication on Slack between journalists at the Associated Press resulted in an erroneous report last week that appeared momentarily to bring tensions between NATO and Russia to their highest point since the Cuban Missile Crisis.
AP fired a reporter after a dangerous blunder. Slack messages reveal a chaotic process.
Related (Pattern of Behavior?!:
Marine Corps bans journalist and veteran James LaPorta from Camp Lejeune base
On 5 February 2017, you participated in inappropriate and unethical activities by attempting to interview a victim of an alleged crime aboard Marine Corps base, Camp Lejeune, (MCB CAMLEJ); which is in violation of [a regulation], by gathering information/taking photographs/videotaping/exposing TV motion picture film within the Camp Lejeune area without prior approval of the Consolidated Public Affairs Office. Additionally, you violated [another regulation]; which states “Personal interviews and telephonic communications between prisoners and media representatives is not authorized, unless a determination is made that such an interview serves the legitimate public interest, or is in the best interest of the military.
Based upon the serious nature of your misconduct, you are being debarred from MCB CAMLEJ. I have determined that your presence aboard MCB CAMLEJ is detrimental to the security, good order and discipline of the Installation. Accordingly, you are hereby notified, upon the receipt of this letter, that you are ordered not to reenter, or be found within the limits of MCB CAMLEJ.
The re-election of Denny Tamaki marks the third consecutive gubernatorial election in Okinawa where an anti-US base candidate has won with a clear majority
Okinawa governor poll results hamper plans to expand US military presence in Japan
By John Pilger
Leni Riefenstahl said her epic films glorifying the Nazis depended on a “submissive void” in the German public. This is how propaganda is done.
Silencing the Lambs — How Propaganda Works
South Korean military says the action is a demonstration of the allies readiness to respond to North Korean ‘provocations’.
S Korea, US fire eight missiles in response to N Korea tests
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
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