Exercise Eager Lion, one of the largest military exercises in the US Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility, is set to return next month in demonstration of the United States' ongoing partnership with Jordan.

The multilateral training exercise, which is scheduled to take place in Jordan May 12-23, has been described by CENTCOM as the capstone event of the US military's relationship with the Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF).

This year will mark the 11th iteration of the drill.

Eager Lion is designed to prepare its participants to face regional challenges across air, land, sea and cyber domains, exchange military expertise, and strengthen interoperability among partner nations from the Middle East and North Africa, Central Asia, Europe, the Americas and Australia.

It leads the way for security and stability using conventional and unconventional scenarios to activate a combined joint task force, which will address simulated threats.

Using the combined joint force approach, the exercise challenges participating partner nations with conventional and unconventional adversaries.

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.

International partners

The exercise underscores the United States' commitment to partners in the Middle East and joint defense against hybrid threats by state and non-state actors.

Traditionally, between 25 and 30 countries participate from all around the globe.

From the Indo-Pacific region, Australia and Japan are expected to participate this year.

European nations that have participated include Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Norway, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries that usually participate are Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar.

Egypt, Kenya and Morocco have also participated in the past.

From the greater Levant region, Cyrus, Iraq and Lebanon support the exercise, and from Central and South Asia, participants include Kazakhstan and Pakistan.

The United States and Canada round out the list of usual participants.

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

"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 planning session in Amman last July.

Jordan's vital role

Jordan plays a vital role in the Middle East, including as home for the Port of Aqaba, a key port for the whole Arabian Peninsula.

Situated on the Gulf of Aqaba, the port plays a major role in CENTCOM's posture for increasing access and readiness options.

It is part of the Western Access Network -- Red Sea ports in Jordan and Saudi Arabia that could provide alternate routes to transport equipment and personnel if the Strait of Hormuz is blocked.

Over the years, Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most strategically significant naval choke points.

From the Port of Aqaba, equipment and personnel could move via the Trans Arabian Network, the interconnection of important seaports, airports and road networks within the Arabian Peninsula, to reach the Gulf states from the west.

These options allow the free flow of goods in peacetime and military equipment in wartime through the Arabian Peninsula.

As such, one component of the Eager Lion exercise is to defend the Port of Aqaba.

The exercise practices protecting the Port of Aqaba from speedboat attacks, drones, ballistic missiles and improvised explosive devices by using special operations and conventional forces together.