Photo By Cpl. Xavier Alicea | U.S Marines with 2nd Battalion 6th Marine Regiment 2nd Marine Division and UAE...... read more read more
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CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — Oct. 23, 2025 — U.S. Marines with 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division conducted support-fire drills during Unit Enhancement Training (UET) 2-25 at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Oct. 23, 2025. The bilateral training event aimed to strengthen cooperation with United Arab Emirates soldiers and improve interoperability between partner forces.
UET 2-25 brings U.S. Marines and UAE forces together for combined live-fire exercises, tactical movements, and battlefield coordination drills. The event allows both forces to build familiarity with each other’s tactics, communication procedures and weapons systems while reinforcing partnerships that support regional stability. “I think success here is strengthening relationships between the Emiratis and the Americans to set conditions for future real-world operations or training events,” said 1st Lt. Jayden Dietrich, an 0302 platoon commander with Echo Company, Victor 2/6. “We’re not just conducting platoon attacks, patrolling and MOUT. We’re building bridges between two nations that, at the strategic level, outweigh everything we’re doing on the ground. At the individual level, readiness means hard, realistic training and preparing for whatever the Department of Defense may ask of us.”
For Marines on the ground, training alongside UAE partners provides a firsthand look at each other’s military culture, leadership styles, and tactics. “Some of the keys to success when training with a partner force start with building mutual respect and understanding cultural differences,” said Staff Sgt. Colton Chancy, an 0369 platoon sergeant with Echo Company, Victor 2/6. “When you get to know them better, they open up more, and you gain trust. Working side by side allows us to exchange ideas and that builds mutual respect.”
Junior Marines participating in UET 2-25 experienced combined training with a partner nation for the first time, learning to operate alongside a foreign force and overcome differences on the battlefield. “I see this partnership helping us both grow,” said Lance Cpl. Charles Ortizkondraski, an 0311 grenadier with Echo Company, Victor 2/6. “A lot of the junior guys like me have never worked with a partner force. We have the language barrier and different tactics, and we have to learn together how to operate. When we learn each other’s tactics and work through the friction points now, it helps in the long run. When we get the call, it could be anywhere, and they could be right by our side fighting the enemy with us.”
Throughout the exercise, Marines and UAE soldiers rotated through multiple firing lanes, practicing coordinated suppressive fire, maneuver under fire, and casualty evacuation drills. The training emphasizes precision, communication and mission readiness giving allied forces the practice needed to execute their roles efficiently in potentially contested environments.
| Date Taken: | 10.23.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 11.20.2025 09:15 |
| Story ID: | 550989 |
| Location: | CAMP LEJEUNE , NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 14 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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