CAP DRAA, Morocco -- California area Marines and sailors hit the ground here in Morocco, 17 April to take part in exercise African Lion 2007.
The exercise is a regularly scheduled, combined U.S. - Moroccan military exercise designed to promote improved interoperability and mutual understanding of each nation’s tactics, techniques and procedures. U.S. Marines and sailors from Weapons Company, 2nd Battalion, 23rd Marine Regiment based in Port Hueneme, Calif., and detachments from 4th Marine Logistics Group and 4th Medical Battalion participated in the bi-lateral unit level, live-fire training with their Moroccan counterparts.
In addition to the cross-nation military training, the Marines and sailors used this two-week deployment as stepping-stone training for their scheduled deployment to Iraq in late 2008.
“Only about 25 percent of the unit has been to Iraq,” said 1st Sgt. Jeff McKeone, Weapons Company first sergeant. “The Marines in the unit are pretty new. Our two weeks of training here is very important and we need to get as much out of this as we can.”
As reservists the Marines and sailors spend two days a month and two weeks per year focusing on their military and cultural training. When they’re not training, Marines like Lance Cpl. Christopher William is a part of the Thousand Oaks, Calif., community working as a professional video game tester.
“On normal drill weekends we get to do mortar shots,” said Williams, a Weapons Company mortar man. “But during these two weeks, we get to fine tune things and get a lot more training than we normally do.”
While the unit conducts training in a desert environment at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms and Camp Pendleton, Calif., the Moroccan desert is similar in appearance and provides the cultural experience the unit could only receive in a Muslim nation.
Learning to respect their prayer time, knowing not to share a Meal Ready to Eat that contains pork products and understanding a bit of their culture is a great value when we do deploy to Iraq, Williams said. “And just getting used to not always understanding the foreign troops and them not understanding you, is good training.”
During the exercise the training provided the opportunity to familiarize both militaries with techniques and procedures as well as build on allied relationships.
“We are working with the Moroccans, not necessarily training them,” McKeone said. “It is important we get to know each other. It is the relationship with countries like Morocco that is very important.”
Concurrent with the exercise other relationships were also fostered, but with the Moroccan civilians. Members of the U.S. Air Force Reserve Command and Utah Army and Air National Guard conducted humanitarian assistance projects in the form of limited medical and dental examinations and treatment in the vicinities of Guelmim and Tan Tan, Morocco. Both teams focused on improving the quality of life for more than 1,000 Moroccans a day during their visit.
“It is so good to be able to show the people here what we can do,” said Staff Sgt David Andrews, medic, Utah Air National Guard. “Many people think all we do is go to war.”
Having built on relationships, military training and with the mission accomplished the service members will return home upon completion of the exercise scheduled for the last week of April.