By Chief Mass Communication Specialist Jason A. Penny YOKOSUKA, Japan — Rear Adm. Dan Cloyd relieved Rear Adm. Rick Wren during a change of command ceremony at the Commander, Naval Forces Japan headquarters building April 29. Cloyd becomes the 31st commander of U.S. Naval Forces Japan (CNFJ) and is also Commander, Navy Region Japan (CNRJ) and Commander, Na ...

By Lisa Daniel, American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, April 29, 2011 – While the United States is confronting terrorism and hostile regimes in places like Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran and Libya, leaders also are looking eastward to shape U.S. security policy for the long-term, the Pentagon’s top policy official said last night. “When future historians look ...

By Rick Maze - Staff writer, Friday Apr 29, 2011 16:22:10 EDT The Defense Department would link future Tricare fee increases to a medical care cost index that has increased by an average of 6.4 percent a year over the past 25 years, but rose just 3.1 percent last year, according to a briefing provided to military associations. The National Health Expenditu ...

By Joshua Stewart - Staff writer, Saturday Apr 30, 2011 9:55:28 EDT Days after the White House called for a $400 billion reduction in defense spending over the next decade, the Navy’s top civilian wanted to make one thing clear: The Navy needs 11 aircraft carriers. “I think the number we’ve got is about right,” Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said Wednesday durin ...

By T.D. Flack Stars and Stripes, April 30, 2011 MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan — Misawa’s Dragon-Eagle Taiko drum team celebrated its 12th anniversary with a fund-raising performance Saturday to benefit the victims of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that hit northeastern Japan. To the delight of a packed crowd in the multi-purpose room at Sollars Elementary Sc ...

Stars and Stripes, April 30, 2011 TOKYO — Rear Adm. Dan Cloyd took command of U.S. Naval Forces Japan from Rear Adm. Rick Wren during a change-of-command ceremony Friday at Yokosuka Naval Base. Cloyd, who became the 31st commander of CNFJ, most recently served as the commander of Task Force 70/ Carrier Strike Group 5, embarked aboard the aircraft carrier U ...

By T.D. Flack Stars and Stripes, April 29, 2011 MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan — After more than six weeks of work, Misawa base residents are tackling their last major cleanup project along the tsunami-battered Japanese coast. A small contingent from the 35th Civil Engineers Squadron, along with a group of Navy Seabees, started working in Tanohata on Wednesday, us ...

By T.D. Flack Stars and Stripes, April 29, 2011 MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan — Although the East Japan Railway Company began service between Tokyo and Aomori on Friday, military members will not be catching a ride on the train because of travel restrictions. The U.S. military has banned its members from traveling within 80 kilometers — nearly 50 miles — of the F ...