Japan and weapons of mass destruction

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their nuclear materials until 1965. And Okinawa, of course, was chock-a-block full of nuclear weapons of all types until 1972. Nuclear-armed ships moored at U.S. Navy bases in Japan, and others called at Japanese ports without restriction...Yet, as compromised as it was, Japan's non-nuclear policy was not wholly fictitious. The Pentagon never commanded nuclear storage rights on the main islands, and it had to withdraw nuclear weapons from Okinawa in 1972...Undoubtedly, Japanese rulers firmly believed that the compromises they made with Washington were necessary for Japanese security during the dark days of the Cold War. Through it all, nonetheless, "non-nuclear Japan" was a sentiment, not a reality.

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served as a recovery facility for bombers after they had dropped their bombs in the Soviet Union or China. War planners reasoned that bombers could return Iwo Jima, "where they would be refueled, reloaded, and readied to deliver a second salvo as an assumption was that the major U.S. Bases in Japan and the Pacific theater would be destroyed in a nuclear war." It was believed by war planners that a small base might evade destruction and be a safe harbor for surviving submarines to reload. Supplies to re-equip submarines as well as

1933: 1537: 964: 911: 338: 2114:), 23 miles (37 km) away and damaged 139 houses. The plane was reduced "to a black spot on the runway". The blast was so large that Air Force spokesman had to announce that there had only been conventional bombs on board the plane. Nothing remained of the aircraft except the landing gear and engine assemblies, a few bombs, and some loose explosive that had not detonated. Very small fragments of aircraft metal from the enormous blast were "spread like 31: 2236: 4648: 1859:

Government will require the re-entry of nuclear weapons and transit rights in Okinawa with prior consultation with the Government of Japan. The United States Government would anticipate a favorable response. The United States Government also requires the standby retention and activation in time of great emergency of existing nuclear storage locations in Okinawa: Kadena, Naha, Henoko, and the Nike Hercules units...

1408:, and mustard gas. By 1969, according to later newspaper reports, there was an estimated 1.9 million kg (1,900 metric tons) of VX stored on Okinawa. The chemical weapons brought to Okinawa included nerve and blister agents contained in rockets, artillery shells, bombs, mines, and one-ton (900 kg) containers. The chemicals were stored at Chibana Ammunition Depot. The depot was a hill-top installation next to 456: 4465: 4064: 3369: 3348: 3272: 3238: 3153: 3112: 3056: 3008: 1949:

engines to ignite with the launcher still in a horizontal position. The Nike missile left the launcher and smashed through a fence and down into a beach area skipping the warhead out across the water "like a stone." The rocket's exhaust blast killed two Army technicians and injured one. A similar accidental launch of a Nike-H missile had occurred on April 14, 1955, at the W-25 site in

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witness John Bordne, Capt. Bassett was the senior field officer commanding the missiles and was nearly forced to have a subordinate lieutenant who was intent on following the orders to launch his missiles shot by armed security guards. No U.S. Government record of this incident has ever been officially released. Former missileers have refuted Bordne's account.

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compensation, saying the issue was covered under postwar treaties. Following the court decision, Japanese officials announced that their government would send a delegation to China to excavate and remove hundreds of abandoned chemical weapons, including bombs, shells, and containers of mustard gas and other toxins left over from the Second World War.

1443:. An official U.S. film on the mission says that 'safety was the primary concern during the operation,' though Japanese resentment of U.S. military activities on Okinawa also complicated the situation. At the technical level, time pressures imposed to complete the mission, the heat, and water rationing problems also complicated the planning. 1766:

document to prove them wrong. The arrangement also made it appear that the United States alone was responsible for the transit of nuclear munitions through Japan. However, the original agreement document turned up in 1969 during preparation for an updated agreement, when a memorandum was written by a group of U.S. officials from the

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119. Japan has the weapons grade plutonium, technology for weaponization, and delivery means in the M-V-5 rocket, indigenous, solid fueled, 1800kg payload capacity, to go nuclear very rapidly should it choose. This dramatic step, however, would require a complete loss of faith in the American nuclear

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is not generally available via official channels. News of accidents on the island usually did not reach much farther than the islands local news, protest groups, eyewitnesses and rumor mills. However, the incidents that were publicized garnered international opposition to chemical and nuclear weapons

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were retained under American control. The islands were among "thirteen separate locations in Japan that had nuclear weapons or components, or were earmarked to receive nuclear weapons in times of crisis or war." According to a former U.S. Air Force officer stationed on Iwo Jima, the island would have

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The secret agreement was concluded without any Japanese text so that it could be plausibly denied in Japan. Since only the American officials recorded the oral agreement, not having the agreement recorded in Japanese allowed Japan's leaders to deny its existence without fear that someone would leak a

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while sandblasting and repainting storage containers. The resultant publicity appears to have contributed to the decision to move the weapons off Okinawa. The U.S. then government directed relocation of chemical munitions. The chemical warfare agents were removed from Okinawa in 1971 during Operation

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In 1945 Japan's rice crop was terribly affected by rice blast disease. The outbreak as well as another in Germany's potato crop coincided with covert Allied research in these areas. The timing of these outbreaks generated persistent speculation of some connection between the events however the rumors

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report notes that "in addition to the results of human experimentation much data is available from the Japanese experiments on animals and food crops". The technical information of Japan's BW program participants was transferred into U.S. intelligence agencies and BW programs in exchange for immunity

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liquid-fueled rocket, in 2003. The ISAS director of external affairs, Yasunori Matogawa, said, "It seems the hard-line national security proponents in parliament are increasing their influence, and they aren't getting much criticism…I think we’re moving into a very dangerous period. When you consider

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from two to 25 years, seemingly in exchange for the information they held. Bob Dohini, a former war crimes prosecution team lawyer, recently claimed that there was no mention of germ warfare in the investigation of war Japanese crimes. The fact was not well known until the 1980s. Japan's emperor was

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The Government of Japan, appreciating the United States Government's requirements in time of great emergency stated above by the President, will meet these requirements without delay when such prior consultation takes place. The President and the Prime Minister agreed that this Minute, in duplicate,

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A 1963 Central Intelligence Agency National Intelligence Estimate stated that: '...US bases in Japan and related problems of weapons and forces will continue to involve issues of great sensitivity in Japan-US relations. The government is bound to be responsive to the popular pressures which the left

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were stored within caves on Chichi Jima. The Johnson administration gradually realized that it would be forced to return Chichi Jima and Iwo Jima "to delay reversion of the more important Okinawa bases" however, President Johnson also wanted Japan's support for U.S. Military operations in Southeast

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administered special research projects in the Pacific. The Far East Section of the Office of the Foreign Secretary administered two such projects which focused "on the flora of Okinawa" and "trapping of airborne insects and arthropods for the study of the natural dispersal of insects and arthropods

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The crash led to demands to remove the B-52s from Okinawa and strengthened a push for the reversion from U.S. rule in Okinawa. The crash sparked fears that another potential disaster on the island could put the chemical and nuclear stockpile and the surrounding population in jeopardy and increased

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Had the plane become airborne, only seconds later it would have crashed farther north of the runway and directly into the Chibana Ammunition Depot, which stored ammunition, bombs, high explosives, tens of thousands of artillery shells, and warheads for 19 different atomic and thermonuclear weapons

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The fire resulting from the aborted takeoff ignited the plane's fuel and detonated the plane's 30,000-pound (13,600 kg) bomb load, causing a blast so powerful that it created a crater under the burning aircraft some thirty feet deep and sixty feet across. The blast blew out the windows in the

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and its related arrangements will apply to Okinawa, as described in the Joint Communique. However, in order to discharge effectively the international obligations assumed by the United States for the defense of countries in the Far East including Japan, in time of great emergency the United States

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and other chemical munitions to all 50 U.S. states. In 1985 the U.S. Congress mandated that all chemical weapons stockpiled at Johnston Atoll, mostly mustard gas, Sarin, and VX gas, be destroyed. Prior to the beginning of destruction operations, Johnston Atoll held about 6.6 percent of the entire

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sponsored. BW experts in Okinawa and "at several sites in the Midwest and South" conducted in 1961 "field tests" for wheat rust and rice blast disease. These tests met with "partial success" in the gathering of data, and led, therefore, to a significant increase in research dollars in fiscal year

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at the Soviets and their allies. Quick thinking by Capt. William Bassett who questioned whether the order was "the real thing, or the biggest screw up we will ever experience in our lifetime” delayed the orders to launch until the error was realized by the missile operations center. According to

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had explained to the Japanese parliament that "the return of the Bonins had nothing to do with nuclear weapons yet the final agreement included a secret annex, and its exact wording remained classified." A December 30, 1968, cable from the U.S. embassy in Tokyo is titled "Bonin Agreement Nuclear

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But when these non-nuclear principles were being enunciated, Japanese territory was already fully compromised, in spirit if not in letter. Although actual nuclear weapons were removed from Iwo Jima at the end of 1959, Chichi Jima, which had the same legal status, continued to house warheads with

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on Okinawa which according to some witnesses, was complete with a nuclear warhead. While the missile was undergoing continuity testing of the firing circuit, known as a squib test, stray voltage caused a short circuit in a faulty cable that was lying in a puddle and allowed the missile's rocket

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During the Second World War limited test use of aerial spray delivery systems was employed only on several Japanese-controlled tropical islands to demarcate points for navigation and to kill dense island foliage. Despite the availability of the spray equipment, herbicide application with aerial

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In August 2002, a Japanese court ended decades of official denials and acknowledged, for the first time, that Japan had used germ warfare in occupied China in the 1930s and 1940s. The court acknowledged the existence of Japan's biological warfare program but rejected the plaintiffs' demands for

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Japan has since become a nuclear-capable state, said to be a "screwdriver's turn" away from nuclear weapons; having the capacity, the know-how, and the materials to make a nuclear bomb. Japan has consistently eschewed any desire to have nuclear weapons, and no mainstream Japanese party has ever

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to infect the population in China. The Japanese military dispersed insects by spraying them from low-flying airplanes and dropping ceramic bombs they had developed that were filled with mixtures containing insects and diseases that could affect humans, animals, and crops. Localized and deadly

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In addition to work done in the anti-crop theater during the Cold War, the screening program for chemical defoliants was greatly accelerated. By the end of fiscal year 1962, the Chemical Corps had let or were negotiating contracts for over one thousand chemical defoliants. "The Okinawa tests

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A 1960 accord with Japan permits the United States to move weapons of mass destruction through Japanese territory and allows American warships and submarines to carry nuclear weapons into Japan's ports and American aircraft to bring them in during landings. The discussion took place during

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It is true that Chichi Jima, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa were under U.S. occupation, that the bombs stored on the mainland lacked their plutonium and/or uranium cores, and that the nuclear-armed ships were a legal inch away from Japanese soil. All in all, this elaborate strategem maintained the

1723:, written by MacArthur immediately after the war, does not explicitly prohibit nuclear weapons. But when the U.S. military occupation of Japan ended in 1951, a new security treaty was signed that granted the United States rights to base its "land, sea, and air forces in and about Japan." 1176:

At the close of World War Two, the U.S. planned to attack Japan's food supply with anti-crop chemical agents and by July 1945 had stockpiled an amount of chemicals "sufficient to destroy one-tenth of the rice crop of Japan." However, logistical problems would have reduced that estimate.

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over the ocean." The motivation for civilian research programs of this nature was questioned when it was learned that such international research was in fact funded by and provided to the U.S. Army as requirement related to the U.S. military's biological warfare research.

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The initial phase of Operation Red Hat involved the movement of chemical munitions from a depot storage site to Tengan Pier, eight miles away, and required 1,332 trailers in 148 convoys. The second phase of the operation moved the munitions to Johnston Atoll. The

1214:, U.S. Army Medical Center was used to grow "medically important" arthropods, including many strains of mosquitoes in a study of disease vector efficiency. The program reportedly supported a research program studying taxonomic and ecological data surveys for the 1189:

has been widely reported on Okinawa as well as at other locations in Japan. The U.S. government disputes these assertions and the issues surrounding the subject of military use anti-plant agents in Japan during the 1950s through the 1970s remains a controversy.

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epidemics resulted and an estimated 200,000 to 500,000 Chinese died of disease. Recent additional firsthand accounts testify the Japanese infected civilians through the distribution of plague-infested foodstuffs, such as dumplings and vegetables. During the

1754:, then Japan's Foreign Minister. "There were many things left unsaid; it was a very sophisticated negotiation. The Japanese are masters at understood and unspoken communication in which one is asked to draw inferences from what may not be articulated." 994:

South Korean interest in developing an atomic bomb began in 1950. The interest was partially a result of the rapid surrender of Korea's then-enemy Japan following use of atomic bombs in World War II. Post-war aggression from the North and from the

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While there are currently no known plans in Japan to produce nuclear weapons, it has been argued that Japan has the technology, raw materials, and the capital to produce nuclear weapons within one year if necessary, and some analysts consider it a

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arrived at Johnston Atoll with the first load of projectiles on January 13, 1971. Phase II completed cargo discharge to Johnston Atoll with five moves of the remaining 12,500 tons of munitions, in August and September 1971. Units operating under

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suggested that Japan should develop its own nuclear weapons, claiming that it was becoming too expensive for the US to continue to protect Japan from countries such as China, North Korea, and Russia that already have their own nuclear weapons.

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Prime Minister Sato and President Nixon met in Washington, DC where several agreements including a revised Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) and a formal policy related to the future deployment of nuclear weapons on Okinawa were reached.

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it was carrying, all of which were too deep for recovery. Since the ship was traveling to Japan from duty in the Vietnam war zone, no public mention was made of the incident at the time and it would not come to light until 1981 when a

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A MGM-13 MACE B missile test launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Controversy has emerged over whether, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Okinawa-based 873d Tactical Missile Squadron received orders to launch against Sino-Soviet

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on Okinawa on August 9, 1945. The U.S. military immediately began constructing a second B-29 base and a facility for atom bomb processing in Okinawa to be completed in September 1945 that would open more targets in mainland Japan.

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In 1951, the first of many allegations were made against the United States by the communist belligerent nations in the Korean war of employing biological warfare using various techniques in attacks launched from bases on Okinawa.

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In response to the perceived threat from North Korean-launched ballistic missiles, Japanese government officials have proposed developing a first strike capability for Japan's military that includes ballistic and cruise missiles.

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As stated in our Joint Communique, it is the intention of the United States Government to remove all the nuclear weapons from Okinawa by the time of actual reversion of the administrative rights to Japan; and thereafter the

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was able to keep the plane on the ground and bring the aircraft to a stop while preventing a much larger catastrophe. The aircraft came to rest near the edge of the Kadena's perimeter, some 250 meters from the

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Brankowitz, William R., Chemical Stockpile Disposal Program. Chemical Weapons Movement History Compilation : OFFICE OF THE PROGRAM MANAGER CHEMICAL DEMILITARIZATION ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, MD, 12 June

1855: 1508:(JACADS) was built to destroy all the chemical munitions stored on Johnston island. The first weapon disposal incineration operation took place on June 30, 1990. The last munitions were destroyed in 2000. 3480: 672:

to the Japanese BW military scientists and researches. Japanese biological warfare information provided to U.S. authorities after World War II remained a secret and was eventually returned to Japan.

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on thousands, mostly Chinese, Korean, Russian, and other nationalities, mainly across Asia (Taiwanese, Vietnamese, Cambodians, Filipinos, etc), as well as some American, British and Dutch POWs and

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be kept each only in the offices of the President and the Prime Minister and be treated in the strictest confidence between only the President of the United States and the Prime Minister of Japan.

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mosquito lays eggs and requires standing water to reproduce. Approximately three days after it feeds on blood, the mosquito lays her eggs over a period of several days. The eggs are resistant to

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over the American lines. However, this plan never took shape. Had it succeeded, thousands of American soldiers and marines may have died, and the operation as a whole may very well have failed.

1319:. Laird had categorically denied to Congress that a program for modification of the weather existed. The program employed cloud seeding as a weapon which was used to induce rain and extend the 1211: 1913:

nicknamed "Atomic Annie" and the projectiles it fired were also based here. Okinawa at one point hosted as many as 1,200 nuclear warheads. At the time, nuclear storage locations existed at

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1962 to conduct additional research in these areas. The money was devoted largely to developing "technical advice on the conduct of defoliation and anti-crop activities in Southeast Asia."

1327:. The use of a military weather control program was related to the destruction of enemy food crops. Whether the use of a weather modification program was directly related to any of the 3028: 1889: 1823:

Storage," but within the same file "the National Archives contains a 'withdrawal sheet' for an attached Tokyo cable dated April 10, 1968, titled 'Bonins Agreement--Secret Annex,'".

687: 450: 422:. Prior to 1946 Japan carried out many attacks using weapons of mass destruction (chemical and biological), principally in China. In 1995, members of the Japanese religious cult 3944: 1846:

was found in 1994. "The existence of this document has never been officially recognized by the Japanese or U.S. governments." The English text of the draft agreement reads:

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Japan became interested in obtaining biological weapons during the early 1930s. Following the international ban on germ warfare in interstate conflicts by the 1925

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solidified that interest. A South Korean nuclear facility began to reprocess fuel and enrich plutonium based on the observation that Japan was also producing it.

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Solid fuel rockets are the design of choice for military applications as they can remain in storage for long periods, and then reliably launch at short notice.

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Japan's employment of BW was largely viewed as ineffective, due to the absence of efficient production or delivery technology. The U.S. government provided a

661: 367: 3577: 728:, canisters that were abandoned by Japan in their hasty retreat are still being dug up in construction sites, causing injuries and allegedly even deaths. 1110: 2769: 811: 3130: 2604: 1778:

can whip up on these issues. We do not believe that this situation will lead to demands by any conservative government for evacuation of the bases.'

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This was at least one year prior to the creation of Project 112. The Okinawa anti-crop research project may lend some insight to the larger projects

1826: 3829:"State Department Document reveals 'Secret Action Plan' to Influence 1965 Okinawan Elections: MemCon Records Discussion of Funneling Funds to LDP" 3563: 4668: 4331: 268: 69: 3720: 2691: 4008: 1505: 1334:

In theory, any CBW program employing fungus spores or a mosquito vector would have also benefited from prolonged periods of rain. Rice blast

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programs is not documented. However, it is certain that some of the military herbicides in use in Vietnam required rainfall to be absorbed.

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Sheldon H. Harris (3 May 2002). Factories of Death: Japanese Biological Warfare, 1932-45, and the American Cover-up. Taylor & Francis.

2223:"It is necessary to understand how the world’s security is maintained. We should not put a taboo on discussions about the reality we face." 2130:

and the Crew Chief later died from burn injuries after being evacuated from Okinawa. Two Okinawan workers were also injured in the blasts.

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Staff; the Departments of State, Defense, Army, Commerce and Treasury; the Joint Chiefs of Staff; the Central Intelligence Agency; and the

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Suzanne Marshall PhD: "Chemical Weapons Disposal and Environmental Justice", Kentucky Environmental Foundation, November, 1996 (funded by

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Since World War II, the United States military based nuclear and chemical weapons and field tested biological anti-crop weapons in Japan.

3982:"Thunder in the Night, B-52 Crash at Kadena AFB, November 19, 1968, Eyewitnesses Captain Gary Sible, SP5 Tom Madracki, John Logan, et al" 901: 871: 761:

in December 1993. Japan ratified The Chemical Weapons Convention in 1995 and was thus a state party upon it entering into force in 1997.

248: 233: 193: 183: 178: 4411:"Okinawa: the junk heap of the Pacific; Decades of Pentagon pollution poison service members, residents and future plans for the island" 819: 3289: 1163: 1074: 278: 3411: 1576: 1523: 1223: 881:

mission was that the reentry and landing of its return capsule demonstrated "that Japan's ballistic missile capability is credible."

792: 419: 360: 93: 88: 4175: 3044:. Maryland: US Army Chemical Corps Historical Office, Army Chemical Center via rockymountainarsenalarchive.wordpress.com blog. 1962 1056: 649: 203: 188: 103: 2580: 3131:"Indian press articles on W.H.O. Biogenetic Mosquito control Project and Migratory Bird Project, Document Number: 1974NEWDE10039" 2581:"THE ACTUAL AND POTENTIAL DEVELOPMENT OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS TECHNOLOGY IN THE AREA OF NORTH EAST ASIA (KOREAN PENINSULAR AND JAPAN)" 1767: 861:

Lawmakers made national security arguments for keeping Japan's solid-fuel rocket technology alive after ISAS was merged into the

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advocated acquisition of nuclear weapons or any weapons of mass destruction. There are controversies on whether such weapons are

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Toshiyuki Shikata, a government adviser and former lieutenant general, indicated that part of the rationale for the fifth M-V

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leased 41 acres (170,000 m) on Johnston. Phase I of the operation took place in January and moved 150 tons of distilled

253: 163: 133: 118: 113: 2344: 2219:'s threat to use nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear state to be a game changer. Abe wants to stimulate necessary debate: 1548: 1125: 975: 922: 1646: 1261: 353: 341: 143: 138: 4618: 4564: 3227: 945:-based ballistic missiles that are within range of Japan have guided Japanese and U.S. defense and deterrence strategies. 2369: 1909:

32 Mace Missiles were kept on constant nuclear alert in hardened hangars at four of the island's launch sites. The 280mm

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for this reason. For this reason Japan is often said to be a "screwdriver's turn" away from possessing nuclear weapons.

885: 862: 638: 791:, it suffered from an array of problems, and was ultimately unable to progress beyond the laboratory stage before the 3496: 2211:. This includes housing American nuclear weapons on Japanese soil for deterrence. This plan comes in the wake of the 1465: 488: 217: 4049: 751:. A large stockpile of other chemical agents and precursor chemicals were later found in raids on their facilities. 2212: 2185: 2174: 1883: 1771: 1219: 806:

forbids the establishment of offensive military forces, but not nuclear weapons explicitly. In 1967 it adopted the

3041: 2038: 4481: 3679:"Bikini A-Bomb Tests July 1946: Underwater Atomic Blast Contaminated Test Ships Making Them "Radioactive Stoves"" 2249: 2033: 1878: 1835: 1662: 1328: 770: 508: 401: 153: 4144: 1244:

was a highly classified weather modification program in Southeast Asia during 1967-1972 that was developed from

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Organizational History- 267th Chemical Company, Letter of Capt. Charles H. Vogeler RIBCD-267CML March 26, 1966

2445: 788: 714: 536: 2153:(Nike-H) missiles. The depot also included 52 igloos in the Red Hat Storage Area containing Project Red Hat's 2005:

report revealed that a one-megaton bomb had been lost. Japan then formally asked for details of the incident.

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stated that Japan would neither develop nuclear weapons nor permit them on its territory". He instituted the

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Japan Under the Nuclear Umbrella: U.S. Nuclear Weapons and Nuclear War Planning In Japan During the Cold War

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and can survive for periods of six or more months. When rain floods the eggs with water, the larvae hatch.

1077:. The incident contributed to a sense of urgency in the United States to research a BW capability. By 1942 807: 657: 563: 3653:

The History of Nuclear War I: How Hiroshima and Nagasaki were devastated by nuclear weapons in August 1945

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Technicians at work on a Mace B nuclear-armed cruise missile in a hard-site launcher on Okinawa in 1962.

1375: 1037: 4673: 4638: 2414: 2127: 2057:(registration number 55-01030) with a full bomb load, broke up and caught fire after the plane aborted 1652: 1527: 1456: 623: 22: 3592: 3364: 4652: 3945:"Atomic Energy Act Prevents Declassification of Site of 1958 "Broken Arrow" Nuclear Weapons Accident" 2017: 1173:

chemical delivery systems were not systematically implemented in the Pacific theater during the war.

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Japanese naval warships captured by the U.S. after Japan's surrender in World War II, including the

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Agreed Minute to Joint Communique of United States President Nixon and Japanese Prime Minister Sato

4015: 3456: 4048:. Office of The Surgeon General, Department of the Army, United States of America. Archived from 3097:

International Activities of the National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council, 1964/1965

1993: 1950: 1480: 1215: 573:

Japan sent a submarine with unspecified biological weapons early in 1944 to defend the island of

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in South Korea in order to oppose military actions by the People's Republic of China during the

4176:"United States Secretly Deployed Nuclear Bombs In 27 Countries and Territories During Cold War" 3541: 3510: 1807: 1484: 1473: 1393: 504: 500: 3651: 2955: 2917: 2864: 2569:

Vol. 10, No. 9 (Sep., 1970), pp. 765-778, University of California Press. DOI: 10.2307/2643028

810:, ruling out the production, possession, or introduction of nuclear weapons. Japan signed the 3536: 3095: 2803: 2776: 2517: 2478:"The World: Revisiting World War II Atrocities; Comparing the Unspeakable to the Unthinkable" 2050: 1699: 1685: 1199: 1062: 803: 620: 299: 3828: 1690: 1636: 1586:

The atomic age on Japan's southern islands began during the final weeks of the war when the

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Tens of thousands of artillery projectiles at Chibana Army Ammunition Depot, September 1969

1965: 1958: 1941: 1926: 1666: 1632: 1086: 591:

Japan's biowarfare experts had hoped to launch biological attacks on the U.S. in 1944 with

60: 4305:"How One Air Force Captain Saved The World From Accidental Nuclear War 53 Years Ago Today" 2980: 652:

in order to escape war crimes and crimes against humanity charges. esearchers arrested by

8: 3537:"The Army's disarming site Johnston Atoll once again soon will be strictly for the birds" 2135: 2066: 2054: 1711: 1587: 1097: 4179: 3187: 2692:"Secret South Korean Nuclear Weapons Program Created Anxiety in Washington in Mid-1970s" 2647: 1583:

were deployed in order to avoid having “an Okinawa from one end of Japan to the other.”

675:

Right-wing Japanese officials claim that no proof of Japan's wartime atrocities exists.

4495: 3445: 3031:. THE COURIER-MAIL. Australia. Retrieved October 10, 2015. Archive date April 14, 2012. 2723: 2669: 2587: 2482: 2312: 2089: 2013: 1572: 1448: 1389: 1320: 1182: 796: 748: 683: 581: 540: 484: 4277: 4235:"Nike History, Eyewitness accounts of Timothy Ryan, Carl Durling, and Charles Rudicil" 1206:

Avon Park Air Force Range § Cold War and Biological Warfare experimentation usage

451:

Allegations of biological warfare in the Korean War § Alleged Japanese assistance

4535: 4506: 3918: 3657: 3630: 3623: 3571: 3419: 3386: 3330: 3262: 3209: 3201: 2988: 2961: 2923: 2870: 2835:"As North Korea missile threat grows, Japan lawmakers argue for first strike options" 2728: 2661: 2459:

Factories of Death. Japanese Biological Warfare, 1932–1945, and the American Cover-up

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Asia." The Bonin and Volcano islands were eventually returned to Japan in June 1968.

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Factories of Death: Japanese Biological Warfare, 1932–1945, and the American Cover Up

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By the early 1950s and the outbreak of the Korean War, Okinawa was seen as America's

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criminals from the Japanese mainlands. In military campaigns, the Japanese army used

464: 393: 389: 4145:"Nuclear Weapons on Okinawa Declassified December 2015, Photos Available Since 1990" 2943:

U.S. War Department, War Crimes Office Report (undated), retrieved: January 17, 2014

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into 16,000 feet of water resulting in the loss of the pilot, the aircraft, and the

1980:

on Okinawa erroneously received coded launch orders to fire all of their 32 nuclear

1969: 1830:

Mark 7 Atomic bomb being readied by the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing at Kadena Air Base

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passed legislation on January 12, 1971 (PL 91-672) that prohibited the transfer of

1476:, the 5th and 196th Ordnance Detachments (EOD), and the 175th Ordnance Detachment. 1429: 1405: 1241: 1236: 1030: 849: 516: 397: 45: 3760: 2042:

Thousands of artillery projectiles at Chibana Army Ammunition Depot, February 1969

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which was established to oversee the U.S. development of BW-related technology at

1025:

has long been viewed as a stepping-stone to force open the remainder of Japan and

580:

Another attack against American troops with biological weapons was planned during

3947:. The National Security Archive, The Gelman Library, George Washington University 3618: 2982: 2919:

Chemical and Biological Warfare: A Comprehensive Survey for the Concerned Citizen

2896: 2373: 2348: 2341: 2259: 2204: 2161:

the urgency of moving them to a less populated and less active storage location.

2119: 2062: 1981: 1932: 1798: 1695: 1619: 1501: 1409: 1308: 1078: 1007: 1003: 776: 699: 512: 476: 381: 50: 2539: 1384:

U.S. chemical weapons in Japan were deployed to Okinawa in the early 1950s. The

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The National Security Archive, The Gelman Library, George Washington University

3231: 2216: 2047: 1794: 1733: 1436: 1397: 1022: 780: 596: 238: 55: 2366: 2145:

used in the MGM-13 Mace cruise missile as well as warheads for nuclear tipped

1815: 665:

unable to be tried. Later revelations indicated his knowledge of the program.

523: 4662: 4469: 4068: 3800:"Japanese Reveal Oral Pact on US Atom Arms, Document Number: 1974STATE237009" 3719:

Norris, Robert S.; Arkin, William M.; Burr, William (January–February 2000).

3484: 3423: 3373: 3352: 3276: 3242: 3205: 3157: 3116: 3060: 3012: 2107: 1945: 1944:

anti-aircraft missile was accidentally fired from the Nike site 8 battery at

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but this never happened due to public opposition and political pressure. The

1440: 1352: 1253: 1245: 1066: 744: 707: 608: 423: 4234: 3329:(Report). Crops. Division, U.S. Army Biological Laboratories. Archived from 2981:

Committee on the Disposition of the Air Force Health Study (25 April 2006).

1423:, according to other reports) were exposed to low levels of the nerve agent 1392:

code named YBA, YBB, and YBF. The operation deployed chemical agents to the

1248:

research conducted on Okinawa and other tropical locations. A report titled

3213: 2665: 2241: 2192: 2111: 2002: 1681: 1580: 1567:

The intensity of the fighting and the high number of casualties during the

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or not. Japan has signed many treaties prohibiting these kinds of weapons.

1896:

being transported to an F-100 by the 18th Tactical Fighter Wing on Okinawa

754:

In 1995, JGSDF admitted possession of sarin samples for defense purposes.

731:

Several chemical attacks on various people using VX gas and sarin and the

3391: 2074: 1989: 1977: 1790: 1658: 1492: 1488: 1452: 1401: 1357: 1343: 1335: 1324: 1269: 1149: 1137:

were never proven and the outbreaks could have been naturally occurring.

1131: 942: 720:

Experiments involving chemical weapons were conducted on live prisoners (

713:

against Chinese troops and guerillas in China, amongst others during the

703: 642: 630: 1536: 963: 910: 648:

Japanese scientists from Unit 731 provided research information for the

4203:"'Okinawa bacteria' toxic legacy crosses continents, spans generations" 2562: 2200: 2008:

Last, In September 1968, Japanese newspapers reported that radioactive

1922: 1914: 1819: 1547: with: Iwo Jima atomic bomb facility construction. You can help by 1257: 884:

At a technical level the M-V design could be weaponised quickly (as an

604: 1728:

technicality that the United States had no nuclear weapons "in Japan."

1404:. The shipments, according to declassified documents, included sarin, 1323:

season in support of U.S. government strategic efforts related to the

4009:"History of Chemical and Biological Warfare: An American Perspective" 2123: 2009: 1591: 1281: 1044: 948: 895: 836:

to develop nuclear weapons to counter a North Korean missile threat.

688:

alleged to have assisted the US in employment of BW in the Korean War

627: 616: 585: 562:

also suffered Japanese biological attacks. Other battles include the

551: 468: 455: 433: 4143:

Burr, William; Elias, Barbara; Wampler, Robert (February 19, 2016).

3296:. Daytona Beach, Florida. New York Times News Service. May 19, 1974. 3196: 3171: 2770:"Paths Diverging? The Next Decade in the US-Japan Security Alliance" 2656: 2631: 522:

Japan's infamous biological warfare Unit 731 was led by Lt. General

3804:

US Department of State EO Systematic Review. US Department of State

3307:

Orville, Capt. H.T. (USN) (May 28, 1954). "Weather Made to Order".

3135:

US Department of State EO Systematic Review, US Department of State

3093: 2115: 1992:

attack aircraft rolled off of an elevator of the aircraft carrier

1973: 1802: 1782: 1615: 1607: 1595: 1432: 1420: 1296: 1292: 878: 721: 710: 653: 612: 496: 480: 460: 444: 3855:

National Intelligence Estimate 41-63 Japans Problems and Prospects

3321: 1976:. According to missile technicians who witnessed events, the four 4468: