JOINT BASE LEWIS MCCHORD, Wash. (June 30, 2015) -- Several hundred I Corps Soldiers recently headed to Australia, where they're slated to join a 33,000-strong contingent of Australian forces and other government and non-government agencies participating in the sixth iteration of the biennial Exercise Talisman Sabre, July 4-19.
I Corps Commander Lt. Gen. Stephen Lanza said the biennial exercise is an opportunity to improve U.S./Australian combat readiness and interoperability, maximize combined training opportunities and conduct maritime prepositioning and logistics operations.
"Talisman Sabre brings all the components together of Pacific Command along with the Australian military, and because of that, I Corps headquarters will certify as part of a joint task force," said Lanza, who will command the Combined Forces Land Component Command, from Gallipoli Barracks near Brisbane during the exercise.
Talisman Sabre is generally held during odd years and merges the previous exercises of Tandem Thrust and Crocodile into one biennial, joint, combined exercise with U.S. and Australian forces. Planning responsibility alternates every two years.
Lanza said Talisman Sabre is part of a longstanding and close relationship between U.S. and Australian forces.
"We have a tremendous historic Partnership with the Australians," he said. "They have been with us in every major campaign and operation we've had and to partner with them in this critical operation is extremely important. We will continue to have a significant relationship with the Australians in the future."
While Talisman Sabre is planned and hosted primarily by Australian and U.S. forces, members of the New Zealand Defense Forces will participate as embedded units within the Australian Defense Force, and members of the Japanese Self-Defense Force, will participate for the first time as embedded personnel within U.S. military units.
Along with the opportunity to hone military skills, significant involvement from international, Australian and U.S. government agencies make this a truly collaborative whole-of-government effort. Active participation by international organizations includes the United Nations World Food Programme, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Australian government entities include the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Australian Agency for International Development, the Australian Department of Agriculture, the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service, the Australian Civilian Corps, the Australian Federal Police and the Asia Pacific Civil-Military Centre of Excellence.
Participating U.S. agencies include the U.S. Departments of State, Justice and Agriculture, FBI, U.S. Agency for International Development and the American Red Cross.
Lanza said working with all of the different elements at Talisman Sabre is crucial to achieving the goals of the exercise.
"The end state is that we provide Adm. [Harry] Harris, the [U.S. Pacific Command] commander with a certified, joint-task-force-capable headquarters, capable of conducting operations regionally or globally in support of military operations," he said.
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