Group Arabian Sea Warfare Exercise 21 Underway in the U.S. 5th Fleet From U.S. Naval Forces Central Command

By Commander U.S. Naval Forces Central Command Public Affairs | | March 21, 2021

Arabian Sea - France, Belgium, Japan and the U.S. are participating in Group Arabian Sea Warfare Exercise (GASWEX) 21, a multilateral maritime exercise in the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman.

This exercise provides a unique opportunity for participating forces to enhance mutual interoperability and capabilities in maritime security, anti-air warfare, anti-surface warfare and anti-submarine warfare operations.

Participants include ships and aircraft from the French Charles De Gaulle carrier strike group, auxiliary ship FS Var (A 608), frigates FS Provence (D 652) and FS Chevalier Paul (D 621), Belgian frigate BNS Leopold I (F 930), and Japanese destroyer JS Ariake (DD 109).

U.S. forces include the Makin Island amphibious ready group (ARG) with embarked 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), guided-missile cruiser USS Port Royal (CG 73) and various aircraft including F-35, P-8, MH-60, Air Force F-16s, E-3 and tankers.

By cooperatively training together, exercises like this allow participating naval forces to effectively develop the necessary skills to address threats to regional security, freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce. This is one of many exercises in which the U.S. military participates with partner nations in the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility each year intended to enhance partnerships and interoperability.