AMMAN, Jordan -- Marines and sailors from 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade are among 6,000 U.S. and Jordanian service members taking parting in Exercise Eager Lion 2016 in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, May 15-24.

Exercise Eager Lion has been conducted annually since 2011, marking the 6th iteration of the exercise, and the 5th MEB has set their goals to make it the best evolution yet by taking their Deployable Joint Command and Control -- or DJC2, as they call it -- capability to the next level. 

With a fully functional combat operations center and more than 300 workstations, the DJC2 affords the U.S. and Jordanian leadership the ability to plan and disseminate timely information to the operators in the field.

To further enhance interoperability and partnership capacity, the Marines of the DJC2 have introduced the CENTCOM Partner Network Jordan, or CPN-J. The CPN-J is a U.S. Central Command initiative design to heighten lines of communication between coalition forces and their Jordanian counterparts through a secured computer network.

“The CPN-J allows for rapid communication and collaboration between coalition forces and Jordanian Armed Forces,” said U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Harry Gardner, Joint Staff Sustainment observer and trainer. “It expedites and coordinates efforts of the 5th MEB to help set up the leadership of the exercise for success.”

Jordanian Armed Forces Brig. Gen. Majed Al-Zuhair, will lead the Coalition Forces Land Component Command and U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Carl E. Mundy III will assume the role of his Deputy CFLCC. Both will work out of the DJC2 at a training site located outside of Amman, and will exercise command and control of elements of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Central Command, Commander Task Force Five Six, and elements of the Jordanian Armed Forces. 

Eager Lion 16 will consist of a 10-day series of simulated scenarios to facilitate a coordinated, partnered military response to conventional and unconventional threats. The scenarios developed will include border security, command and control, cyber defense and battle space management.

“Jordan is an important and valued partner nation who shares the goal of security and stability in the region,” said U.S. Marine Corps Col. John Polidoro, the Eager Lion 16 Deputy Chief of Staff. “Our main focus is interoperability throughout the exercise, and ultimately any real world crisis that may develop. ” 

Military leaders from both nations understand that the success of Eager Lion is not based on this iteration alone, but a representation of continued partnership working shoulder-to-shoulder well into the future.

“Its ongoing challenges must be faced together as brothers-in-arms,” added Polidoro, who also is the 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade Chief of Staff, out of Naval Support Activity, Bahrain. “We look forward to reinforcing all that we have accomplished with this exercise over the past five years, learn from our mistakes, and continue to evolve Eager Lion to meet the future challenges that we will face together.”