Joseph Ditzler

Joseph Ditzler is a Marine Corps veteran and the Pacific editor for Stars and Stripes. He’s a native of Pennsylvania and has written for newspapers and websites in Alaska, California, Florida, New Mexico, Oregon and Pennsylvania. He studied journalism at Penn State and international relations at the University of Oklahoma.

@JosephDitzler

ditzler.joseph@stripes.com

The U.S. secretary of defense shakes hands with a woman on a tarmac next to an airplane.

Austin addresses China, UFOs and women in combat during Laos visit

On one of his last trips to Asia as Defense Secretary, Lloyd Austin expressed regret that China chose not to meet with Southeast Asian defense ministers this week in Laos. At the same press conference, he also talked briefly in praise of women’s contributions in the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A wall of traditional Japanese wooden screens with paper panels and a window revealing a woodsy exterior.

Stroll through Japan’s past at this architectural park in western Tokyo

The outside of a Burger King restaurant.

Base commander shutters Burger King in Japan for ‘unsatisfactory health conditions’

A sailor is silhouetted against the setting sun while walking along the flight deck of an aircraft carrier.

Aircraft carrier USS George Washington officially bound for Japan, Navy says

The Child Development Center at Sagamihara Housing Area near Camp Zama, Japan, is pictured Sept. 18, 2024.

Army investigates abuse claim at on-base child care center in Japan

An investigation is underway into an allegation of abuse at a Child Development Center at Sagamihara Family Housing Area, about 2½ miles from Camp Zama.

Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall speaks at the Air and Space Forces Association’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference in National Harbor, Md., Sept. 19, 2022.

Air Force secretary underlines growing Chinese power, intent as threat to Indo-Pacific

During an address to the Air & Space Forces Association, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall said the Chinese Communist Party continues to heavily invest in “capabilities, operational concepts and organizations that are specifically designed to defeat the United States” and its Western Pacific allies.

Lt. Gen. Xavier Brunson, I Corps commander, speaks during a ceremony at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in February 2022.

President Biden nominates I Corps leader to command US Forces Korea

The Pentagon has named Army Lt. Gen. Xavier Brunson as the nominee to command U.S. Forces Korea, a triple-hatted position that includes leading the Combined Forces and United Nations commands. If approved by the Senate, Brunson would also pin on the fourth star of a full general.

American students Layla Springs, 16, left, and Rosa Thompson, 15, middle left, work with Japanese students Cocomi Trinity Gibson, 16, middle right, and Yuina Nishiba, right, during the Student Educational Exchange and Dialogue at Matthew C. Perry High School, Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, Sept. 8, 2024.

Annual DODEA Japan culture swap opens with entrepreneurial exercise

American and Japanese middle and high school students gathered here for a weekend of cultural exchanges and entrepreneurial role-playing.

U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel visits Yokosuka Naval Base, south of Yokohama, Jan. 19, 2024.

American ambassador questions Chinese intent behind Japan air, sea ‘incursions’

U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel poked the dragon again Tuesday with a tweet aimed at Chinese incursions into Japanese air and maritime territory.

A runner takes advantage of slackening rain as Tropical Storm Shanshan churns near Marine Corps Station Iwakuni, Japan, Friday, Aug. 30, 2024.

Weakened Shanshan lumbers across southern, central Japan with drenching rain

The massive typhoon that churned ashore in southern Japan became a tropical storm by Friday but didn’t move far from its beachhead.

Sailors heave in the line on the fantail of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln at Naval Base Guam on Aug. 8, 2024.

USS Abraham Lincoln strike group steams toward Middle East after Guam, Saipan port calls

The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and its strike group pulled away from Guam and Saipan this week after a four-day respite before heading to the Middle East.

The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln pulls into Guam, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024.

USS Abraham Lincoln sailors, en route to Middle East, stop in Guam for rest and relaxation

The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln steamed into Naval Base Guam over the weekend for a port call ahead of its mission to the Middle East.

American and Japanese flags fly together during joint training on Ishigaki Island, Okinawa, in October 2023.

Pentagon renews $16.5 million contract to support Japan’s command-and-control network

A U.S.-based IT defense contractor recently extended by five years its contract to maintain and improve Japan’s Central Command System, the digital network for information sharing within the country’s Self-Defense Forces.

Fighters with North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, intercept a Russian Tu-96 strategic bomber in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone, July 24, 2024.

Russia says bombers completed 10-hour training flight between Japan and South Korea

Moscow sent a pair of missile-armed, long-range bombers on a 10-hour training flight this week between Japan and South Korea, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.

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