The U.S. Marine Corps and Japan Ground Self-Defense Force’s (JGSDF) bilateral exercise ‘Iron Fist 26’ will see approximately 1,550 troops carry out amphibious landings, air assaults and more across Japan’s southwest region next month.
Spanning Feb. 11-March 9, Iron First 26 will take place on military installations and training areas across Okinawa, a critical island in the strategic chokepoint between Japan and Taiwan, according to Tuesday news releases from the JGSDF and Japan Ministry of Defense The annual joint exercise originally began in 2006 and was held at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., but the exercise was moved in 2023 to southwest Japan as part of a U.S. effort to deter conflict in the region.
First phase training at Camp Hansen will focus on joint U.S.-Japan command training, ground combat training, live-fire training, engineering training, logistics and medical training and helicopter flight training.
The second and more extensive phase will run from Feb. 27-March 9 and will include naval ships, joint U.S.-Japan landings and ground combat training.