17 February 2021 7th Fleet Destroyer Conducts Freedom of Navigation Operation in South China Sea SOUTH CHINA SEA -- USS Russell (DDG 59) asserted navigational rights and freedoms in the Spratly Islands, consistent with international law. This freedom of navigation operation (“FONOP”) upheld the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea recognized in international law by challenging unlawful...
16 February 2021 Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star Conducts Research, Collects Valuable High-latitude Data to Expand Knowledge of Remote Arctic Region JUNEAU, Alaska -- The Seattle-based Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) arrived in Juneau Friday for a logistics stop as the crew nears the end of their months-long Arctic deployment conducting scientific research and protecting the nation’s maritime sovereignty and security throughout the polar...
16 February 2021 Kadena Airmen Motivated to Receive COVID Vaccine KADENA AIR BASE, Japan -- As vaccinations for COVID-19 are being introduced around the world, more and more individuals are getting the opportunity to be vaccinated against the virus. Kadena Air Base medical staff are now administering the second dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine across the base...
16 February 2021 The U.S. Partners with Muhammadiyah to Advance COVID-19 Case Management in Hospitals JAKARTA, Indonesia -- The U.S. Government represented by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Indonesia Mission Director Ryan Washburn, Feb. 11, 2021, joined the Head of Majelis Pembina Kesehatan Umum (MPKU) Muhammadiyah. Agus Samsudin, and the Director of Public Health...
12 February 2021 III Marine Expeditionary Force and U.S. 7th Fleet Complete Integrated Training for MEFEX OKINAWA, Japan -- III Marine Expeditionary Force Exercise (MEFEX) 21, a joint exercise that further enhanced the Navy-Marine Corps team’s ability to respond to crises or contingencies, concluded Feb. 12, 2021.During MEFEX, III MEF in direct coordination with U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet conducted realistic...
12 February 2021 Misawa Air Base Leaders Sign International Memorandum of Understanding MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan -- U.S. Air Force Col. Jesse J. Friedel, 35th Fighter Wing commander, and Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) Maj. Gen. Takahiro Kubota, 3rd Air Wing commander, signed Memorandum of Understanding International (MOUI) 3010 at Misawa Air Base, Japan, Feb. 12, 2021.The MOUI...
12 February 2021 USS Chicago Returns Home from Indo-Pacific Deployment PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii -- The Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Chicago (SSN 721) returned to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam following a six-month deployment, Feb. 9, 2021.Chicago departed Pearl Harbor, July 15, 2020, for a regularly-scheduled deployment, in which they performed a full...
12 February 2021 Task Force Looks to Prioritize, Synchronize DOD Response to China WASHINGTON -- DOD's China Task Force will examine all the DOD activities relating to what Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III calls America's "pacing challenge" to ensure they are synchronized, prioritized and coordinated to the greatest extent possible, the leader of the review told Pentagon...
12 February 2021 Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape Specialist Conquer the Artic EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska -- Wind gusts as high as 50 miles per hour, wind chills dropping to minus 60 degrees Fahrenheit, and a place where the sun does not rise above the horizon for 65 consecutive days. Arctic Survival training is not for the faint of heart however for the survival, evasion,...
11 February 2021 Coast Guard Accepts Guam’s Third Fast Response Cutter SANTA RITA, Guam -- The Coast Guard accepted delivery of its newest Sentinel-class fast response cutter (FRC), the Coast Guard Cutter Frederick Hatch (WPC 1143), from Bollinger Shipyards in Key West, FL, Thursday.Frederick Hatch is scheduled to be the third FRC stationed in Guam and will arrive in...