International waters south of Japan, Nov. 24, 2015: A U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet prepares for takeoff aboard the USS Ronald Reagan in international waters south of Atsugi, Japan. The flight operations came as Japanese and U.S. forces wrapped up Annual Exercise, a bilateral maritime drill.

The exercise happened amid rising tensions between China and other nations over freedom of navigation and territorial claims in the South China Sea.

“We have not been given any specific orders to do something in the South China Sea,” Vice Adm. Yasuhiro Shigeoka, commander of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force, said during a joint news conference with U.S. 7th Fleet commander Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin. “However, we have been conducting training to coordinate with the U.S. Navy, so we can take such action if orders are given.”

Read the 2017 article on the exercise and tensions here.

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