The US military regularly holds joint exercises with its partners and allies in the Middle East to ensure combat readiness in the region.

The exercises help the US and partner nations foster interoperability, collaboration and intercultural dialogue while fine-tuning their ability to jointly combat various threats to regional security, including terrorism, piracy, narcotics and smuggling, humanitarian crises and natural disasters.

Since the spring, US and partner forces have held multiple exercises in the region, including the Maritime Fire Support Symposium in Amman, Jordan, and the biannual Eager Lion exercise, also in Jordan, among others.

Maritime Fire Support Symposium

The symposium held in July brought together marine and naval forces from eight nations to build collective readiness in fire support.

During the exercise, a US B-52 long-range heavy bomber conducted a 32-hour-long Bomber Task Force mission, demonstrating the critical airpower it can provide to forward fighting positions.

The B-52 Stratofortress boasts the most versatile payload of any aircraft in the US Air Force inventory and can carry 32,000kg of ordnance.

Its high payload enables it to carry large volumes of fuel, guaranteeing its ability to support forces across the world.

The exercises additionally featured KC-135 Stratotankers, known as the "gas station in the sky," which provided aerial refueling and extended the range and endurance of other aircraft.

Participating nations experienced the close air support capabilities of the A-10 Thunderbolt II, a heavy-armored attack aircraft that, through its loitering capabilities, can support both ground and sea-based forces continuously.

Exercise Eager Lion

Meanwhile, in May, the United States and Jordan cohosted their biannual Eager Lion exercise, featuring participation by 32 other partner nations.

The exercise offered participating security forces the opportunity to share expertise and hone advanced capabilities across the land, sea, air and cyber domains.

It highlighted partner forces' growing focus on collaboratively combating hybrid and multi-domain threats.

Participants practiced a combined live-fire exercise that featured participation by US and Jordanian UH-60L Black Hawks.

US forces practiced sling load operations with a Black Hawk suspending and transporting the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), a key mobile artillery system that can provide both antiaircraft capabilities and long-range precision strikes.

Eager Lion included a multinational disaster response and humanitarian assistance contingency that required coordination with civil authorities.

By practicing these skills during an exercise, partner nations enhanced their ability to respond efficiently and effectively to all manner of crises.