Latest news with #RogerTurner
Japan Times
19-04-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Japan, U.S. patrol Okinawa streets after sexual assaults
U.S. soldiers joined Japanese officials and residents in Okinawa for a one-off joint nighttime patrol Friday following sexual assault cases involving American servicemen. The United States has around 54,000 military personnel stationed in Japan, mostly on the southern island of Okinawa, and their behaviour has long angered locals. A 21-year-old U.S. Marine was charged with rape in June last year, three months after Okinawa prosecutors had charged a 25-year-old U.S. soldier for allegedly assaulting a girl under 16. In the first such joint operation since 1973, participants walked along a downtown street dotted with restaurants, bars and music clubs in the vicinity of a U.S. airbase on Friday night. The U.S. military, which proposed the patrol, said in a statement it reflects "our continued commitment to partnership, accountability and mutual respect." It will contribute "to the safety and trust that are essential to the strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance", said Lt. Gen. Roger Turner, commanding general of the III Marine Expeditionary Force and Okinawa Area Coordinator. The patrol continued until the early hours of the following morning. Rules about how to treat crimes committed by U.S. military personnel are stipulated in the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said when he took office in October that he wanted to review the rules. The 1995 gang rape of a 12-year-old girl by three U.S. soldiers in Okinawa prompted a major backlash — with calls for a rethink of the 1960 pact allowing the United States to station soldiers in Japan. The joint patrol also comes as Tokyo and Washington continue efforts to strengthen their alliance, partly in response to China's military build-up.
Japan Times
11-04-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Japan, U.S. to hold joint patrol after Okinawa sexual assaults
Japanese and U.S. officials said Friday they will jointly conduct a patrol in Okinawa Prefecture following sexual assault cases involving U.S. servicemen. The United States has around 54,000 military personnel in Japan, mostly in Okinawa Prefecture, and their behavior has long angered locals. The one-off joint operation through busy areas until the early hours of the next day was proposed by the U.S. side. "The joint patrol will be held on the night of April 18, and it is perhaps the first such joint event since 1973," an official in Okinawa Prefecture said. Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki may participate, the official added. The patrol reflects "our continued commitment to partnership, accountability, and mutual respect", said Roger Turner, commanding general of III Marine Expeditionary Force and Okinawa Area Coordinator. "By working side-by-side with our Japanese counterparts, we are reinforcing shared standards and contributing to the safety and trust that are essential to the strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance," he said in a statement. Rules about how to treat crimes committed by U.S. military personnel are stipulated in the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said when he took office in October that he wanted to review them. The 1995 gang rape of a 12-year-old girl by three U.S. soldiers in Okinawa prompted a major backlash, with calls for a rethink of the 1960 pact allowing the United States to station soldiers in Japan. In March last year, prosecutors in Okinawa charged a 25-year-old U.S. soldier for alleged assaulting a girl under 16 years old, according to local media and the top government spokesman. And days after that case emerged in June, another came to light in which a 21-year-old U.S. Marine Corps member had been charged with rape. The joint patrol also comes as Tokyo and Washington continue efforts to strengthen their alliance partly in response to China's military buildup.
Al Arabiya
11-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Japan, US to hold joint patrol after sexual assault cases involving US servicemen
Japanese and US officials said Friday they will jointly conduct a patrol in Okinawa following sexual assault cases involving US servicemen. The United States has around 54,000 military personnel in Japan, mostly in Okinawa in the south, and their behavior has long angered locals. The one-off joint operation through busy areas until the early hours of the next day was proposed by the US side. 'The joint patrol will be held on the night of April 18, and it is perhaps the first such joint event since 1973,' an official in Okinawa prefecture told AFP. Okinawa governor Denny Tamaki may participate, the official added. The patrol reflects 'our continued commitment to partnership, accountability, and mutual respect', said Roger Turner, commanding general of III Marine Expeditionary Force and Okinawa Area Coordinator. 'By working side-by-side with our Japanese counterparts, we are reinforcing shared standards and contributing to the safety and trust that are essential to the strength of the US-Japan alliance,' he said in a statement. Rules about how to treat crimes committed by US military personnel are stipulated in the Japan-US Status of Forces Agreement. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said when he took office in October that he wanted to review them. The 1995 gang rape of a 12-year-old girl by three US soldiers in Okinawa prompted a major backlash, with calls for a rethink of the 1960 pact allowing the United States to station soldiers in Japan. In March last year, prosecutors in Okinawa charged a 25-year-old US soldier for alleged assaulting a girl under 16 years old, according to local media and the top government spokesman. And days after that case emerged in June, another came to light that a 21-year-old US Marine Corps member had been charged with rape. The joint patrol also comes as Tokyo and Washington continue efforts to strengthen their alliance partly in response to China's military build-up.
Korea Herald
21-03-2025
- General
- Korea Herald
S. Korean, US Marines hold combined arms, infantry drills
South Korean and US Marines have conducted a three-week combined arms and infantry exercise to enhance their joint operational capabilities and sharpen combat techniques, the South's Marine Corps said Friday. Some 1,100 troops from South Korea's 1st Marine Division and the US 3rd Marine Expeditionary Force joined the drills conducted in the southeastern city of Pohang and the border cities of Pocheon and Paju from March 3 through Friday, according to the Marine Corps. The drills mobilized air and ground assets from both sides, including the South's K808, K1A2 tanks and the MUH-1 Marineon helicopter and the US CH-53E and AH-1Z choppers, it said. Troops first took part in infantry training in Pohang, 262 kilometers southeast of Seoul, before joining the second segment of combined arms training held at military facilities in Paju and Pocheon, both north of Seoul. Lt. Gen. Ju Il-Seok, the commandant of the ROK Marine Corps, and Lt. Gen. Roger Turner, commanding general of the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Force, inspected the training and encouraged troops, the Marine Corps said. The latest exercise was held as part of the regular Korea Marine Exercise Program, designed to strengthen combined readiness between the allies. (Yonhap)
