Japan and U.S. begin Resolute Dragon island-defense exercises in Kyushu and Okinawa
The Facts
- Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force and U.S. forces began the Resolute Dragon exercise on June 20.
- The exercise is being held in southwestern Japan, including Kyushu and Okinawa, and is scheduled to continue through June 30.
- The drills are aimed at practicing the defense of Japan's southwestern or remote islands.
- Roughly 9,500 to 9,600 Japanese and U.S. personnel are participating in the exercise.
- Training activities include deployment or transport of Japanese anti-ship missile systems, including Type 88 and Type 12 launchers.
- Japanese forces plan to use V-22 Osprey aircraft in the exercise for casualty-evacuation training from Miyako Island to Okinawa for the first time.
- The exercise is part of Japan's broader defense posture in its southwestern islands, an area where reports note repeated Chinese vessel intrusions near disputed islands.
- Some civic groups and local residents in Japan have protested the exercise, citing concerns about safety and regional tensions.
How left and right are reading this
- Both agree
- A large U.S.-Japan exercise is rehearsing the defense of Japan’s remote southwestern islands with substantial forces and missile-related training, and neither framing disputes that the drills are a consequential part of Japan’s security posture in a sensitive region.
- They split on
- Whether the story is chiefly about credible island defense amid reported Chinese vessel intrusions, or about the local safety risks and regional tension that large-scale military drills can impose on the communities living alongside them.
Context
What is Resolute Dragon?
It is a joint field exercise involving Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force and U.S. forces, conducted in Kyushu and Okinawa to practice island-defense operations 毎日新聞,Nikkei Asia,anews.
What kinds of operations are being practiced?
Reports say the drills include moving and deploying anti-ship missile launchers such as the Type 88 and Type 12 systems, as well as transport and casualty-evacuation training using V-22 Osprey aircraft vesti.ru,Ukrinform-EN,Nikkei Asia.
Why are some residents protesting the drills?
According to reports on the protests, some local residents and civic groups say the exercise could raise safety risks for nearby communities and increase regional tensions, and they have objected in part to planned low-altitude training flights by U.S. aircraft english.news.cn,chinadailyhk.
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