U.S. Naval Forces Japan/Navy Region Japan (CNFJ/CNRJ) is a dual-hatted command with command and control authority of all shore installations and assigned forces of the
United States Navy in
Japan as well as the responsibility to liaise with the
Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force
, abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...
(JMSDF). It is currently headquartered in
Yokosuka, Japan, onboard
United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka and is commanded by Rear Admiral Brian P. Fort, USN. CNFJ/CNRJ's area of responsibility extends from the southern tip of the
Kamchatka peninsula
The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and west ...
to the northern tip of
Taiwan and, the
Singapore area of operations, and the Indian ocean British Territory of
Diego Garcia, but excludes the
Korean peninsula.
Mission
As a dual-hatted commander, CNFJ/CNRJ reports to Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet for operational concerns and to
Commander, Navy Installations Command for administrative and installation matters. The difference between the two titles is that CNFJ exerts operational control (OPCON) over shore-based Naval personnel in Japan, whereas CNRJ has administrative control of the installations and facilities. Essentially this, this means that all ''shore-based'' Naval forces in Japan are under the command and control of CNFJ/CNRJ.
However, ships and their personnel that are "forward deployed" to Japan (which essentially is their
home port) are excluded. because they are operationally assigned to
United States Seventh Fleet.
CNFJ/CNRJ is also only one of three Navy Regions to be commanded by a two-star admiral, along with
Navy Region Mid-Atlantic Navy Region Mid-Atlantic is one of eleven current naval regions responsible to Commander, Navy Installations Command for the operation and management of Naval shore installations in Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, O ...
and
Navy Region Europe, Africa, Southwest Asia
Navy Region Europe, Africa, Central (EURAFCENT) is one of eleven current naval regions responsible for the operation and management of Naval shore installations and assigned staff in the European, African and Southwest Asian theaters of operation. ...
.
History
In August 1945 the U.S. Pacific Liaison Group with the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (FLTLOSCAP) was established to carry out initial naval activities related to the
Allied occupation of Japan
Japan was occupied and administered by the victorious Allies of World War II from the 1945 surrender of the Empire of Japan at the end of the war until the
Treaty of San Francisco took effect in 1952. The occupation, led by the United States w ...
. On 28 January 1946 FLTLOSCAP was dissolved and Naval Activities, Japan (COMNAVJAP) was established under the command of Vice Admiral R. M. Griffin, who retained this command until 9 July 1948 when he was relieved by Vice Admiral Russell M. Berkey.
When the Far East Command was established on 1 January 1947, Admiral Griffin was redesignated Commander Naval Forces, Far East (COMNAVFE), with the proviso that the title "Commander Naval Forces, Japan," would be used in connection with duties involving the Allied relationships for which Admiral Griffin was responsible to SCAP. On that same date Commander, Naval Activities, Japan, Commander, Naval Operating Base, Okinawa, and Commander, Naval Forces, Philippines, reported to CINCFE for duty while Commander, Marianas, reported for operational control. CINCFE in turn reassigned these responsibilities to COMNAVFE.
Naval Forces Japan was initially a subordinate command of Naval Forces Far East (NAVFE), which in turn from January 1, 1947, was part of
Far East Command. NAVFE consisted of:
[ p.90]
*
Task Force 90 (Amphibious Force, Far East)
*
Task Force 93 (Naval Forces Philippines)
*
Task Force 94 (
Commander Naval Forces Marianas)
*
Task Force 96 (Naval Forces Japan)
On 3 April 1951, NAVFE was restructured. As a result, the Service Forces, previously fragmented among separate
United States Seventh Fleet and NAVFE groups, were consolidated into a new Logistics Group, designated
Task Force 92.
[Rottman, 2002, 92.]
In March, 1952, the geographical boundaries of NAVFE were changed to exclude the Philippines,
Marianas
The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, bet ...
,
Bonin and
Volcano Islands
The or are a group of three Japanese-governed islands in Micronesia. They lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and belong to the municipality of Ogasawara, Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. The islands are all active volcanoes lying atop ...
.
Current Subordinate Commands
*
Naval Air Facility Atsugi
is a joint Japan-US naval air base located in the cities of Yamato and Ayase in Kanagawa, Japan. It is the largest United States Navy (USN) air base in the Pacific Ocean and once housed the squadrons of Carrier Air Wing Five (CVW-5), which ...
Naval Air Facility Misawaonboard
Misawa Air Base (support services to Naval personnel)
*
Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia
Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia is a British Ministry of Defence facility leased to the United States Navy, located on the atoll Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.
Camp Thunder Cove is part of the facility, and is operated by the United Sta ...
*
United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka
*
United States Fleet Activities SaseboUnited States Fleet Activities Okinawaonboard
Kadena Air Base
(IATA: DNA, ICAO: RODN) is a highly strategic United States Air Force base in the towns of Kadena and Chatan and the city of Okinawa, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is often referred to as the "Keystone of the Pacific" because of its hi ...
(support services to Naval personnel)
Singapore Area Coordinator
References
External links
CNFJofficial website
{{US Navy navbox
Commands of the United States Navy