Japan has recognized the United States' former Defense Secretary Robert Gates and former National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley for their contributions to a strengthening of the bilateral alliance.In a decoration ceremony in Washington on Thursday, a message from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was read by an embassy official, saying Japan remembers the assistance and disaster relief, dubbed Operation Tomodachi, provided under Gates' leadership in the wake of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit northeastern Japan in March 2011."The people of Japan will never forget the dedi…READ FULL ARTICLE
