Exercise Eager Lion, a multilateral military training exercise US Central Command (CENTCOM) calls the capstone event of the US military's relationship with the Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF), will return to Jordan from May 12-23.

One of the largest military exercises in the region, Eager Lion is designed to prepare its participants to face regional challenges across air, land, sea and cyber domains and strengthen interoperability among partner nations, according to CENTCOM.

It also aims to exchange military expertise and improve interoperability among partner nations from the Middle East and North Africa, Central Asia, Europe, the Americas and Australia.

"The Eager Lion drill is an extraordinary opportunity for all of us to strengthen ties, exchange knowledge and expertise among our countries' armed forces, and stand united in our commitment to support the regional and international security and ability to [respond]," said Brig. Gen. Hassan Khaldi, JAF director of military training, at a July 2023 planning session in Amman.

"As we face rising aggressive actions by malign forces around the world, these partnerships enable us to meet new and continuing threats together," CENTCOM said in a 2022 press release.

Deterring adversaries, supporting partners

Held since 2011, past iterations of Eager Lion have included counterterrorism training, interagency coordination, strategies to counter cyber threats, maritime and border security drills, air and missile defense coordination, disaster response and humanitarian aid, according to CENTCOM.

During the two-week Eager Lion in September 2022, about 1,700 members of the US Armed Forces and 2,200 JAF members joined nearly 600 coalition personnel from 28 other partner nations, who took part either as participants or observers.

In locations across Jordan, the 2022 event included a live-fire training exercise; scenarios to counter simulated speedboat attacks at the Gulf of Aqaba; training to counter drones, ballistic missiles and improvised explosive devices; and training to respond to a scenario including a potential attack with radiological weapons, reported Unipath Magazine.

Meanwhile, the Jordanian National Center for Security and Crisis Management practiced a whole-of-government response to the simulated attack on Jordan, according to Unipath.

"The scenarios for Eager Lion 22 are based on simulating the current strategic environment and addressing the threats within that environment, whether they be conventional or non-conventional threats from sub-state actors or terrorist threats," JAF Brig. Gen. Mohammed Ali Al-Samadi told Unipath at the time.

For example, during the 2022 exercise, Jordanian troops also focused on securing borders against narcotics smuggling.

The Jordanian army warned in 2022 that drug trafficking from Syria into Jordan is becoming "organized," with smugglers stepping up operations and using sophisticated equipment including drones.

Maritime security is also important for Jordan amid the increasing threat from drug smugglers. In April 2022, Jordan's anti-narcotics department thwarted an attempt to smuggle in 107kg of cocaine hidden inside a container at the port of Aqaba as it was in transit to a neighboring country, according to Jordan's Customs Department.

Eager Lion and other regional CENTCOM exercises help improve regional security and stability, according to the Middle East Institute (MEI).

"Despite posture reductions, the United States is still engaged in the Middle East," wrote Melissa Horvath, a non-resident senior fellow with MEI's defense and security program, in July 2023.

"And it remains able to demonstrate its unmatched capability and willingness to rapidly deploy sufficient military personnel and equipment into the region to both deter adversaries and support its partners."