Maj. Gen. Brian Wolford speaks to reporters after taking command of Marine Corps Installations Pacific at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, on June 14, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
MARINE CORPS AIR STATION FUTENMA, Okinawa — A general with extensive Indo-Pacific experience began his third Okinawa tour Friday as he assumed command of Marine Corps Installations Pacific.
Maj. Gen. Brian Wolford took over for Maj. Gen. Stephen Liszewski during a ceremony inside a leaky hangar on the air station’s flight line.
Wolford, most recently the commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces Korea, led the 3rd Marine Logistics Group on Okinawa from July 2020 to June 2022. He first deployed to the island in the 1990s as a motor and logistics officer.
He kept his remarks brief to the audience of roughly 350 Marines, U.S. and Japanese officials and family members.
“I promise to you that I will give you 100%,” he said. “I expect from you 100%. I came here to win. That is why we are here — to win.”
Liszewski oversaw the command through the later stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and helped restore regular day-to-day operations following the lockdowns. In his remarks, he addressed the threats facing the Indo-Pacific region.
“It’s no secret that since the end of the Second World War, the United States has maintained forward forces in the Indo-Pacific region to maintain peace and stability,” he said. “It’s also no secret to anybody that at this particular time, that peace and stability is being challenged by a number of potential adversaries.”
Maj. Gen. Brian Wolford, left, takes command of Marine Corps Installations Pacific from Maj. Gen. Stephen Liszewski, right, at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, on June 14, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
The command oversees Marine bases in Japan, South Korea, Hawaii and Guam, home of the service’s newest installation, the still-under-construction Camp Blaz. Its mission includes command and control, oversight and budgeting for those installations.
“The stand-in force needs a place to stand, and that place is MCIPAC,” Liszewski said. “The Marines and sailors standing behind me are representative of the 10,800 sailors, Marines, civilians and host nation employees that work at those commands in the Pacific, from Hawaii in the east to Camp Mujuk in the west.”
The ceremony, which took place at the height of Okinawa’s rainy season, was moved from command headquarters at Camp Foster to MCAS Futenma due to inclement weather.
Liszewski and Maj. Gen. David Maxwell, commander of Marine Corps Installations Command in Washington, D.C., cracked jokes about the hangar’s leaking ceiling. They pointed out that while construction has ramped up on facilities throughout the Pacific during Liszewski’s tenure, there’s still work to be done.
“Number one, these guys are blue collar workers,” Liszewski said. “Day in and day out, it’s not about who gets the credit. It’s about operating with a bias for action. When you see an opportunity, seize it. If you see a challenge or an obstacle, knock it down. But drive on, take action, make mission and get ready for the next challenge, because in the installations business there is always one sitting around the next corner.”
Maj. Gen. Stephen Liszewski, outgoing leader of Marine Corps Installations Pacific, speaks during a change-of-command ceremony at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, on June 14, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
During Liszewski’s tenure, Marines on Okinawa renewed natural disaster agreements with local mayors in 2022, allowing four designated U.S. bases to open their gates to Okinawans seeking shelter or higher ground in the event of a natural disaster.
The native of Annapolis, Md., heads to Arlington, Va., to serve as vice director of the Joint Staff.
Wolford first deployed to Okinawa in the 1990s as a lieutenant serving as a motor transport and assistant logistics officer for 3rd Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment; 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment; and Battalion Landing Team 2/6, according to his official biography.
In South Korea, he served as director for plans, policy and strategy for U.N. Command, Combined Forces Command and U.S. Forces Korea.
He enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1987 and served three tours in Iraq and two in Afghanistan, including as commander of Bagram Airfield from 2019 to 2020.
Wolford said his prior service on Okinawa will help him relate to people here.
“I think my biggest challenge — it really falls on me,” he told reporters after the ceremony. “Just like the Marines have to know their job really well, I have to know mine. So, I’m going to spend the next couple of weeks really learning about everything that MCIPAC does in support of the community, in support of the MEF and the joint force.”
