SSJ Friends,

YCAPS and the Sasakaawa Peace Foundation welcome you to a 6 July webinar on the History of Japanese mine warfare and "Kizuna" of Japan-U.S. mine warfare forces featuring Rear Admiral Kawakami Yasuhiro.

Best regards,

John Bradford

YCAPS Executive Director

History of Japanese Mine Warfare and "Kizuna" of Japan-U.S. Mine Warfare Forces
July 6th, 2022 at 1900 (Japan) / 0600 (D.C)

YCAPS & the Sasakawa Peace Foundation are pleased to announce the return of the Community Conversations seminar series in Sasebo. The inaugural event will feature Mr. Yasuhiro Kawakami. Mr. Kawakami (Rear Admiral Ret.) has served 32 years in the JMSDF, primarily in the Mine Warfare and Amphibious Warfare fields. He has also served five times as a commander and four times in Sasebo. He will discuss the history of Japanese Mine Warfare and the close cooperation between the Japan and U.S. Mine Warfare Forces after W.W.Ⅱ.

This event will be a webinar. Future Community Conversations events will be held in person so long as health and safety conditions permit.

Please use this link to join via Zoom.

Yasuhiro Kawakami is a native of Bisei-cho (Beautiful Star town) in Okayama Prefecture (Western Japan). He is a security expert specializing in military strategy, operational Art, operational mobility, tactics, national defense studies, and Japanese security policy. He graduated from the National Defense Academy of Japan in 1988, and the High Level Mine Warfare School and the Naval War College. Additionally, he received a Master's Degree of Arts (Social Management Science) at the Open University of Japan in 2021. After qualifying as a surface warfare officer, he carried out duties on JS Shimayuki (DD133), as navigation officer on JS Asagiri (DD151), and as damage control officer on JS Sawagiri (DD157), all in Sasebo.

Over the course of five overseas deployments, he commanded the minesweeper ship JS Hikoshima (MSC 669, base port at Sasebo), Minesweeper Division 46 (MSCx3, base port at Okinawa), and Minesweeper Division 51 (MSOx3, base port at Yokosuka), and also commanded the Deploy Task Force as chief-of-staff for Commander, Mine Warfare and Amphibious Warfare Force. He completed five tours in the Maritime Staff Office, Chief of Training Section, where he was responsible for defense planning, public affairs, personnel planning, manager of honors and discipline, and commanded the Mine Warfare Support Center (CMWSC). He assumed the post of chairman and professor of the Department of National Defense Studies at the National Defense Academy of Japan in September 2018, and retired from the JMSDF in December 2020 (Rear Admiral JMSDF (Ret.)). He assumed the position of Senior Research Fellow in the Sasakawa Peace Foundation in October 2021.

Format: This event will be off-the-record.
Moderator: Jeff Mazziotta
Registration: Required via this link.
Co-Sponsor: Sasakawa Peace Foundation (SPF)
Webinar Cost: Free of charge