24 February 2021 Readout of Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III's Phone Call with Thailand Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Prayut Chan-o-cha WASHINGTON -- Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby provided the following readout:Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III spoke with Thailand Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Prayut Chan-o-cha on the phone today to reaffirm the importance of the alliance and defense cooperation. Prime Minister...
23 February 2021 Yudh Abhyas Concludes with Strengthened Indo-US Partnership RAJASTHAN, India -- Soldiers of the U.S. and Indian armies concluded the 16th iteration of bilateral exercise Yudh Abhyas during a closing ceremony Feb. 21 at Mahajan Field Firing Range in India.The two-week, U.S. Army Pacific-sponsored exercise included a combined total of approximately 500 troops...
23 February 2021 Pacific-based Marines, Navy Complete Integrated Training for Joint Exercise 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 February 12.During MEFEX, III MEF in direct coordination with U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet conducted realistic...
23 February 2021 USAID Donates Php16M in Learning Equipment to Support Out-of-School Children and Youth MANILA, Philippines -- As part of the United States’ ongoing commitment to support the Philippine government’s Basic Education Learning Continuity Plan during the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) turned over 371 laptop computers worth more than Php16...
22 February 2021 US Forces, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Participate in Resilient Shield 2021 YOKOSUKA, Japan -- U.S. and Japan Self Defense Force will participate in Resilient Shield 2021 from February 22-26, at Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka (CFAY), Japan, and other command centers throughout the region.Resilient Shield is an annual computer-based Fleet Synthetic Training-Joint...
22 February 2021 USS Curtis Wilbur Conducts Trilateral Replenishment-at-sea with Japan, France PACIFIC OCEAN -- The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54) joined the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Towada-class replenishment ship JS Hamana (AOE-424) and the French Floréal-class light frigate FNS Prairial to conduct a tri-lateral replenishment-at-sea (RAS),...
22 February 2021 Multi-capable Airmen ‘Agile Combat Employment’ Training at Cope North 21 ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam --Somewhere above the vast Pacific Ocean, a fighter aircraft has flown for hours, and its fuel supply is running low. Unable to return to its home station for fuel, that's when Agile Combat Employment (ACE) comes into play. Down below on a small island, three Airmen are...
22 February 2021 U.S. Military Turns Over C-130 Hercules Aircraft to Philippine Air Force MANILA, Philippines -- Chargé d’Affaires (CDA) John Law, alongside representatives from the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines’ Joint U.S. Military Assistance Group (JUSMAG), on Thursday turned over the first of two C-130H Hercules Aircraft to be delivered under a recent transfer to Secretary of...
19 February 2021 From the Tundra to the Tropics, F-35As Make Their Debut in Cope North 21 GUAM, UNITED STATES -- In April 2020, the Pacific Air Forces celebrated the arrival of its first F-35A Lightning II to Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska. Now, in February 2021, PACAF is celebrating another milestone with the aircraft’s debut in Cope North 2021.The F-35As are joining flying units from...
19 February 2021 Misawa Fighters “Agile Combat Employment” Trilateral Exercise Cope North 21 ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- More than 230 Airmen and 15 F-16’s from the 35th Fighter Wing forward deployed to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, as the lead wing for Cope North 21 (CN21), Feb. 3-19.CN21 is an annual exercise that serves as a keystone event enhancing United States, Australian and...