Tokyo: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida sent a letter of condolences to U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday on the deaths of U.S. service members in the crash of a CV-22 Osprey off the coast of Japan last week.

Japan is “filled with deep sorrow,” Kishida said in the letter, conveying his “heartfelt condolences” on the death of the eight crew members.

Kishida also expressed his country’s gratitude to the Osprey crew members for the commitment that they had made to the Japan-U.S. alliance.

Biden said in a statement Tuesday that the Nov. 29 crash of the Air Force CV-22 Osprey transport aircraft killed all eight U.S. service members aboard.

Air Force Special Operations Command said Tuesday that the U.S. military ended its search and rescue operations for the Osprey crew members after determining that “survivors are unlikely.”

The Osprey crashed into the waters off the island of Yakushima in the southwestern Japan prefecture of Kagoshima.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa issued a statement in which she extended her sincere condolences for the loss of the U.S. service members.

Japan is “determined to cooperate with the United States to maintain peace and security in Japan and the surrounding region,” Kamikawa said. She also sent a letter of condolences to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

In his statement, Biden said that the United States is “grateful to the Government of Japan for assisting in the search and rescue and ongoing recovery efforts.”

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a separate statement, “We continue to gather information on this tragic incident, and we will conduct a rigorous and thorough investigation.”

JIJI Press