When I went overseas in the Seventies while in the USN, they were very diligent about educating us regarding drug use while a visitor in foreign countries.
As everyone knows, drug use was relatively commonplace back then in the USA. But they told us that even if punishment was lax in the USA, not to expect any laxity in foreign countries when there as a guest.
They warned us that we would see foreign nationals in their countries using drugs freely, but if we assumed it was okay and we were caught, we, as Americans, would be treated quite differently than the locals who wouldn’t be punished at all.
On our first deployment to the Med, they told us of an American sailor busted for possession of marijuana on a previous deployment, and was still there.
When I went on our next deployment the following year, they told us the story again and said he was STILL there with no release in sight.
We are of the same vintage, though I was a WESTPAC/IO sailor. Countries with which we had status of forces agreements (SOFAs) were usually reasonable about miscreant U.S. service members, and they allowed us to deal with them. Non-SOFA countries, Singapore comes to mind, were different. The troops typically were on good behavior, but occasionally one got caught up in their legal system and was left behind.
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There currently is the case of a U.S. Navy lieutenant in Japan who suffered a medical emergency while driving his vehicle, passed out, and struck & killed a couple of pedestrians. Notwithstanding a 1960 SOFA between Japan and the USA, the Nippon judge has been an asshole and sentenced the officer to three years in prison. This despite an apology from the lieutenant and an agreement to pay a large restitution to the victims’ family. Even our supposed allies know the Biden administration is a bunch of Whiskey Tangos, and they can take advantage of American citizens.