Self-Defense Force, U.S. Marines Hold Joint Drill in Oita Pref.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:37 JST, February 19, 2023

The Ground Self-Defense Force held a press viewing of Iron Fist, a joint Japan-U.S. training exercise, at the Hijudai maneuvering ground in Oita Prefecture on Saturday.

The drill among GSDF and U.S. Marine Corps personnel has been conducted in California since 2005. This was the first time the exercise was held in Japan with the participation of U.S. marines stationed in Okinawa Prefecture.

As part of the exercise, members of the GSDF’s Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade, which is responsible for defending remote islands, were deployed to an area of the maneuvering ground demarcated as a remote island occupied by enemy forces. They confirmed the procedures for taking control of the area together with marines who arrived on two MV22 Osprey transport aircrafts.