The Middle East's largest maritime exercise is under way, enabling participants from more than 35 countries and international organizations to share important naval tactics, techniques and procedures.

The US Navy kicked off the 12-day International Maritime Exercise 2025 (IMX25) training event in Bahrain and Jordan on February 10.

Hosted by US Naval Forces Central Command, the exercise offers a valuable opportunity for participating nations to share experiences and lessons learned that contribute to improving all nations' capabilities.

IMX25 is the ninth iteration of the exercise since its establishment in 2012.

It is designed to demonstrate global resolve in preserving the rules-based international order and offers an opportunity for participants to collaborate and showcase regional maritime security cooperation.

IMX25 started with academic discussions on topics including the naval planning process, maritime operations center procedures, and disaster response coordination, the US Navy said in a statement.

The operational phase of the drill covers partner exchanges on mine and countermeasures; visit, board, search and seizure; unmanned systems and artificial intelligence integration; and explosive ordnance disposal, it said.

It also covers vessel defense; search and rescue; and mass casualty response, among other focus areas.

Linked exercises

This year's IMX is linked with exercise Cutlass Express, which kicked off February 10 and is taking place throughout East Africa and the western Indian Ocean until February 21. Led by US Naval Forces Europe-Africa, Cutlass Express is designed to enhance regional maritime awareness and the combined capabilities of partner nations to respond to maritime threats.

IMX25 and Cutlass Express will be sharing information between maritime operations centers to strengthen theater-to-theater coordination and US and partner nation capabilities and interoperability.

Bringing together more than 5,000 personnel from over 35 nations and international organizations, both exercises serve as a platform to strengthen regional and global maritime security cooperation.

Cutlass Express features a series of shore-based and at-sea training events that include scenarios to test capabilities in maritime interdiction, including visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) and counter-illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing procedures.

It also covers initiatives to enhance Women, Peace and Security (WPS), information sharing between Maritime Operation Centers, and counter-proliferation interdiction capabilities, according to US Africa Command.