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On May 14, DPJ Secretary General Katsuya Okada made a courtesy visit to the United States Air Force Misawa Base in Aomori Prefecture. He met with Colonel Michael Rothstein, Commander of the 35th Fighter Wing, and expressed his gratitude for the support given by US forces to the affected areas in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Immediately following the Great East Japan Earthquake, the US Forces in Japan had initiated “Operation Tomodachi”, carried out mainly by the Ronald Reagan carrier strike group and helicopters, which had focused on supporting search and rescue efforts and in the provision and transportation of material goods such as water and food supplies, fuel and sanitary goods to the affected areas. The US Army and Marine Corps had assisted with infrastructure reconstruction efforts and had been involved with recovery work at Sendai Airport, harbours on the Sanriku coast and the JR Sengoku line, as well as with clearing debris from schools.
During the meeting, Rothstein first briefed Okada regarding the role of Misawa Base and its involvement in “Operation Tomodachi”. Rothstein emphasized that at Misawa, the aim was to enable the base and the local community to coexist and prosper in harmony, and so US forces place importance on exchanges with the local community. He said that on the occasion of the disaster, he had “been moved upon seeing how the Japanese people, despite being affected by the disaster, had made every effort to engage in recovery efforts without complaint.” Rothstein went on to say that a project entitled “Misawa Helps” had been established, and around 2500 people had registered as volunteers. With the catchphrase of “Have You Done It?” base employees and their families had engaged in 36,000 hours’ worth of voluntary activities. He stressed, “We are trying to do what we can together with [the local community]. We want to show our gratitude and friendship through relief efforts.” In response to this, Okada once more expressed his appreciation for the efforts made by US forces, saying, “I pray for your future success. Please do your best to support Japan-US relations.”
At the end of the meeting, Rothstein presented Okada with a coin minted to commemorate the friendship between Japan and the United States demonstrated by the support activities.
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