Japanese Government Requests Earthquake Assistance from US Forces... US Forces in Japan to Transport Supplies Tomorrow

The U.S. Forces Japan will begin support activities on the 17th for the areas affected by the strong earthquake that occurred on the 1st in the Noto Peninsula, Ishikawa Prefecture, central Honshu, Japan.

According to Kyodo News on the 16th, Minoru Kihara, Japan's Defense Minister, stated, "Currently, the Self-Defense Forces are fully committed to secondary evacuation transport and other efforts, and the Self-Defense Forces are needed in many places," adding, "To ensure the smooth continuation of the material transport carried out by the Self-Defense Forces, we requested support from the U.S. Forces Japan."

Japanese Self-Defense Forces personnel evacuated residents of Wajima City, Ishikawa Prefecture, affected by the earthquake on the 11th using helicopters to Kanazawa City.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Starting tomorrow, the U.S. Forces Japan plan to use helicopters and other means based at the Komatsu Air Base of the Air Self-Defense Force in Ishikawa Prefecture to transport relief supplies to Noto Airport on the Noto Peninsula. Although various governments offered rescue support after the earthquake, the Japanese government declined these offers.

Regarding the reason for requesting U.S. military support, Defense Minister Kihara explained, "The U.S. Forces Japan possess transport means such as helicopters within Japan and can quickly provide transport capacity to support disaster victims," adding, "Considering that there is little burden in coordinating the establishment of reception systems, we exceptionally requested transport support."

U.S. President Joe Biden stated in a statement on the 1st, "The United States is ready and willing to provide all necessary support for the Japanese people," and added, "The U.S. administration is in contact with Japanese authorities."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.