Photo By Staff Sgt. Teresa Cantero | Maj. Gen. Yann Latil, Commander in Chief of the French Armed Forces in New Caledonia...... read more read more
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Soldiers of the French Armed Forces hosted an opening ceremony for Croix du Sud at Les Artifices, a FANC military facility in Noumea, New Caledonia, April 21, 2025.
Croix du Sud is the 11th iteration of a 14-day biennial joint, multilateral field training exercise organized and led by the FANC, focusing on disaster relief, crisis events, and enhancing partnership and interoperability between the United States and the militaries of Oceania countries with 2,000 participants and using 13 aircraft and five ships from 18 countries.
Maj. Gen. Yann Latil, FANC Commander in Chief, said a primary goal of the exercise is to respond effectively to natural disasters and related security issues in the South Pacific and to promote unity between nations.
"Preparing to combat natural disasters also means preparing to address security challenges in the Pacific, and strengthening the integrity of our countries,” Latil said, “and sending a message of unity among nations committed to peace, security and free movement in the oceans."
Five nongovernmental organizations are participating in the exercise, which is more than ever before and reflects an emphasis on a more accurate simulation of a real-world response while effectively integrating civilian and military forces.
U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Steven Underwood, a 322nd Civil Affairs Brigade Soldier serving as the operations and intelligence non-commissioned officer for 9th Mission Support Command Soldiers (MSC) participating in CDS this year, shared his experience so far building partnerships with the FANC and other exercise participants.
"As a civil affairs unit, we support humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions,” Underwood said, “Working alongside partner nations, and the ability to have command and control of joint task force operations, is of value to the entire unit."
The 322nd Civil Affairs Brigade is the Army Forces Command (ARFOR) and lead U.S. element from Fort Shafter, Hawaii with Soldiers assigned to the 9th MSC, the only reserve component in the Pacific region with the capability to support the U.S. Army.
According to U.S. Marine Capt. Angela Rivera of the Combat Logistics Battalion 1 (CLB 1), participating as the emergency control center officer in charge, CDS provides valuable hands-on training including medical training and experience with handling the demanding roles of an evacuation control center which would be activated in response to a natural disaster.
"CLB-1 provides real world medical assistance, and we are equipped with an evacuation control center team, or ECC," Rivera said. "If there were to be a natural disaster or any sort of scenario where we needed to evacuate American citizens or any other civilians, we would deploy the ECC."
Rivera said she looks forward to working with the U.S. Army military police company to coordinate security during crisis operations.
"It's going to be extremely beneficial and awesome to work with the Army's military police, and see what they bring to the table when it comes to providing security for the citizens going through an ECC."
In addition to the 368th Military Police Company and the 322nd Civil Affairs Brigade, other 9th MSC units attending include the 305th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment and the 962nd Quartermaster Mortuary Affairs Company.
Of the 3,000 French Soldiers permanently stationed in the Pacific, approximately 1,800 are assigned to the FANC.
Alongside the France and the U.S., participating countries include Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, the United Kingdom, Vanuatu, Chile, Colombia, Germany, Japan, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Peru, Singapore, Belgium, and the Philippines.
| Date Taken: | 04.22.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.02.2025 18:25 |
| Story ID: | 495833 |
| Location: | NOUMEA, NC |
| Web Views: | 108 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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