MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP BUTLER, OKINAWA, JAPAN -- Units from the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) and U.S. military have begun exercise Keen Sword 23 on November 10, 2022.
From 10 to 19 November 2022, Indo-Pacific Command's First Island Chain Stand-In Force (SIF) III Marine Expeditionary Force is conducting distributed, combined and joint maritime operations throughout the nearly 2,000 mile long archipelago of Japan, as a part of exercise Keen Sword 23.
During this year’s iteration, the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force’s (JGSDF) Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade (ARDB) and U.S. Marines from III Marine Expeditionary Force will conduct amphibious landings side-by-side in the vicinity of mainland Japan. Additionally, there are numerous other training events that will explore every operational space with U.S. and Japanese units working side-by-side, exercising in the land, sea, air, space, and cyber domains simultaneously.
Keen Sword exercises the combined capabilities and lethality developed between III Marine Expeditionary Force and the Japan Self-Defense Force while strengthening the interoperability and combat readiness of the U.S.-Japan Alliance.
This iteration of the biennial exercise features multiple distributed Bilateral Ground Tactical Control Centers where Marines alongside their Japanese counterparts will command and control both unilateral and bilateral maritime strikes and amphibious force actions. This demonstration of SIF capabilities provides assurance of our readiness to rapidly counter aggression against Japan and other regional Allies and partners.