Sailors spell out Hajimemashite, nice to meet you, on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) as the ship arrives at Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka, on October. 1, 2015.
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The warship’s arrival received a warm welcome from Japanese officials because of its role in disaster relief after the March 2011 quake and tsunami disaster as part of the United States government’s “Tomodachi”, or friends, project. USS Ronald Reagan is replacing USS George Washington (CVN 73). “So, we think that these new measures will deepen that, will strengthen that, and will make us better together”, Ray Mabus, the U.S. Secretary of the Navy, told a press briefing in Yokohama.
Serious crimes such as rape, trespassing and drunk driving committed by USA servicemen in Japan were reported in recent years and triggered a tough curfew and liquor-ban order in late 2012. It passed new laws during a chaotic parliamentary session last month that allow the country’s troops to also defend their allies, mainly the US, overseas.
When the George Washington was deployed in September 2008, hundreds of protesters rallied against the first permanent deployment of a nuclear-powered carrier at a Japanese port.
During its relief work four years ago, the Ronald Reagan ferried food and water to the city of Sendai in disaster-hit northern Japan. About 80 sailors on the mission have sued the operator of the wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, alleging that it lied about the levels of radiation in the area.
It is the fifth USA aircraft carrier to be stationed at Yokosuka since 1973, following the Midway, the Independence, the Kitty Hawk and the George Washington.
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The Navy’s new forward deployed aircraft carrier arrived in Japan on Thursday, according to the service.
