U.S. Coast Guard, Japan Coast Guard crews conduct joint search-and-rescue exercise in Kagoshima Bay 

Crewmembers from the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Kimball (WMSL 756) and the Japan Coast Guard conduct a search-and-rescue exercise in Kagoshima Bay, Japan, Feb. 14, 2023. Kimball’s crew are in Kagoshima to conduct joint training and professional exchanges with members of the Japan Coast Guard expanding on a memorandum of cooperation signed in 2022 between the two sea services which established Operation SAPPHIRE, a perpetual operation to strengthen relationships, increase bilateral engagements.