U.S. Marines with Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force-Crisis Response-Africa 20.1, Marine Forces Europe and Africa, participate in Exercise Wild Crocodile II at Campo de Tiro de Alcochete, Portugal, January 13, 2020. The bilateral training enhanced interoperability between the U.S. and Portuguese military forces. SPMAGTF-CR-AF is deployed to conduct crisis-response and theater-security operations in Africa and promote regional stability by conducting military-to-military training exercises throughout Europe and Africa. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Cpl. Kenny Gomez)
Transcript
This exercise is important because it bolsters an already existing relationship we have with the Portuguese. The planning process on my level with the company commander has been incredible. It gives us the ability to, one, allow our junior Marines to work with a partner nation and two, it’s been giving our platoon staff the ability to work through problems together with the Portuguese.
It benefits Marine Corps because it gives not only us but Portuguese Marines, the ability to see that if we were to go downrange with each other that we could work with each other and we could get the mission done.
The US Marine Corps is involved and has been involved in many combat situations much more than we have ourselves. These are opportunities to gain experience with a branch that has been all over the world and we’ll incorporate that in our training in the future. So, it’s very, very good.