Marines Add New “Littoral” Combat Unit to Okinawa to Defend Japan & Philippines

by Jim Morris, Warrior Vice President, News

The Marine Corps is reorganizing some of its forces in Asia to counter the growing threat from China.

In an interview last week with Japan’s Nikkei news agency, Marine Commandant Eric Smith said that a new unit has been established on the Japanese island of Okinawa to counter what he called Chinese aggression. The unit is called the Marine Littoral Regiment (MLR) and it’s designed to move quickly to come to the defense of remote islands that come under attack.

Smith said the MLR’s purpose is to protect the Japanese home islands, the Philippines and South Korea. Smith didn’t mention Taiwan, but Okinawa is less than 500 miles from Japan and US forces based on the island could come to Taiwan’s aid in case of a Chinese attack.

The new Marine unit has around 2,000 troops. Smith told Nikkei the Marines will set up a similar unit on Guam in a few years. Some Marines currently based in Okinawa will be transferred to Guam starting in December.

Smith was asked if these measures would be enough to deter Chinese aggression.

“If they don’t want to have their ships sunk, then it will be enough to deter them,” he said. “Because if they were to attack the Philippines or Japan, then it would be a very bad day for them.”

The Marine move is one more sign that the US is boosting its military presence in Asia.