Keen Edge 24 sharpens Australian, Japanese and U.S. defense skills
FORUM Staff
Australian Defence Force (ADF), Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) and United States military personnel strengthened joint operational capabilities, refined command and control procedures, and enhanced interoperability during Keen Edge 24. Participants in the early February 2024 command post exercise, part of an annual bilateral series that alternates with Keen Sword field training exercises, used computer simulations to rehearse responses to crisis or contingency.
Approximately 1,350 troops from the JGSDF Western Army and the U.S. Marine Corps’ III Marine Expeditionary Force (III MEF) practiced command and control of maritime terrain in the first island chain, aiming to increase bilateral coordination and apply small-but-lethal force concepts for territorial defense.
Using bilateral coordination nodes in Okinawa and Japan’s main islands, participants simulated synchronized logistics, fires and maneuvers.
“The Western Army and III MEF’s bilateral relationship sets the benchmark for mutual defense,” said Lt. Gen. Roger Turner, commanding general of III MEF. “This exercise will enhance our joint coordination for complex multi-domain operations.”
Outside Tokyo, the U.S. Army’s 38th Air Defense Artillery Brigade rehearsed an integrated air and missile defense mission as part of the command post drills.
“The purpose of this exercise is to innovate and experiment with urgency and focus,” said Col. Neal Lape, the brigade’s commander. “We conduct routine exercises throughout the year and are constantly working to create, refine, and deploy new capabilities that solve air defense challenges, improving every time.”
The latest Keen Edge expanded collaboration with U.S. Space Command (USSPACECOM) and U.S. Cyber Command, reflecting the multidomain cooperation essential to a large-scale exercise or operation, according to the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.
The realistic training environment allows “joint forces and Allies and Partners to synchronize and integrate capabilities, ensuring we can respond effectively and mutually” in the region, USSPACECOM said.
Keen Edge 24 participants also tested the U.S. Defense Department’s zero-trust cybersecurity concept. The approach assumes all computer networks are compromised and requires constant authentication and authorization to “thwart and frustrate an adversary.”
Australian personnel deployed to Hawaii and Japan to participate in Keen Edge for the first time. The ADF was also a first-time participant in exercise Yama Sakura, conducted in Japan and the U.S. in December 2023.
“The Australia-Japan relationship is underpinned by engagement and collaboration across all aspects of defense, and we are actively strengthening our commitment to security cooperation,” said Australian Army Lt. Gen. Greg Bilton, the ADF’s chief of joint operations. “Following exercise Yama Sakura in late 2023, Australia’s participation in exercise Keen Edge with two of our most important partners in Japan and the United States reinforces our shared commitment to regional security.”
Keen Edge follows several Japan-U.S. naval exercises.
Drills in the Philippine Sea in late December 2023 and early January 2024 included the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) helicopter destroyer JS Ise, the U.S. Navy aircraft carriers USS Carl Vinson and USS Theodore Roosevelt, and U.S. guided-missile destroyers and cruisers. The exercise involved air-defense training, sea surveillance, cross-deck drills and tactical maneuvers “to advance unique high-end warfighting capability,” said the U.S. 7th Fleet.
Australia, Japan and the U.S. also conducted naval drills in the South China Sea in early February. The Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Warramunga joined the JMSDF destroyer JS Sazanami, and the U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS John Finn and littoral combat ship USS Gabrielle Giffords, according to the Australian Defence Department.
“We believe that through this trilateral exercise, we were able to improve our tactical capabilities and strengthen cooperation with the U.S. Navy and the Royal Australian Navy, as well as embody their strong will and ability to create a security environment that does not tolerate unilateral changes to the status quo by force,” JMSDF Cmdr. Masayuki Ban said in a statement.