MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Marines and sailors with 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade welcomed aboard their new commanding general, Brig. Gen. Joaquin F. Malavet, during a change of command ceremony August 29, 2014.
The mission of 1st MEB is to composite and deploy as a Marine Air Ground Task Force in support of combatant commander requirements for contingency response and serves as the core element of a joint task force.
It provides flexibly scalable forces, allowing commanders to tailor force footprints to evolving situations and effectively composite modular MAGTFs by combining forward-deployed forces with rapidly deployable standby forces at the right place, at the right time.
Many of the Marines and sailors from the brigade recently returned from Large Scale Exercise 2014 at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California. LSE-14 was a bilateral training exercise conducted by 1st MEB to build U.S. and Canadian forces’ joint capabilities through live, simulated, and constructive military training activities.
Shortly after a successful LSE-14, Brig. Gen. Joaquin F. Malavet assumed command of 1st MEB from Brig. Gen. Carl E. Mundy III, who commanded the 1st MEB since June of last year.
Malavet opened his speech with humble acceptance of the task ahead.
“Rose and I are grateful to be a part of your I MEF family, without a doubt the world’s finest expeditionary force,” said Malavet.
Malavet was most recently assigned as the principal director, South and Southeast Asia for the Office of the Secretary of Defense Policy. Since his commission in 1985 as a naval aviator, Malavet held many aviation and staff duties and has deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan with Marine Aircraft Groups and squadrons. During the ceremony, Mundy talked about the capabilities and readiness of 1st MEB.
“Though 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade hasn’t deployed, I do leave confident that when the call comes, and it usually always does, that 1st MEB is ready to answer that call,” said Mundy. Malavet agreed with Mundy that the Marines of 1st MEB are well-trained and dedicated to service.
“The 1st MEB warriors before you clearly understand that their service is high risk and worth it. It has purpose; and that purpose is everything,” said Malavet.
At the conclusion of his speech, Malavet offered words of insight and assurance that Marine units such as the 1st MEB hold the key to America’s future.
“The global strategic landscape is shifting rapidly. It is growing more lethal; yet simply stated, our Marines represent certainty and victory,” said Malavet.