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JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR HICKAM, Hawaii - More than 350 service members and civilian mariners embarked aboard the expeditionary mobile base USS John L. Canley (ESB 6), arrived in Hawaii, concluding Pacific Partnership 25 (PP25), the five-month multinational civic assistance and disaster management preparedness mission, Dec. 1.
This year marked the first time Pacific Partnership operated from two platforms – a Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship, USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) and an expeditionary sea base, USS John L. Canley (ESB 6), serving as the mission platforms. The PP25 team began operations aboard the dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) from Jun. 27 to Sept. 10 before transitioning to the USS John L. Canley (ESB 6) for the remainder of the mission.
“Pacific Partnership brings together allies and partners who share a commitment to stability, resilience, and a free and open Indo-Pacific,” said Capt. Mark B. Stefanik, Pacific Partnership 2025 mission commander. “Our presence sends a clear message: we stand with our partners, and we are ready to respond together when crisis strikes.”
Born out of the devastation of the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami, Pacific Partnership is an enduring annual mission in the Indo-Pacific region. This year’s mission was joined by partner nations from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom.
“Pacific Partnership 25 strengthened strategic relationships across the South Pacific through side-by-side training, direct support and sustained engagement,” said Col. Matt Churchward, Royal Marines, deputy commander for Pacific Partnership 2025. “By delivering projects requested by host nations, we reinforced our shared commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific and demonstrated the lasting impact the United States and its allies can deliver together.”
PP25 medical personnel, working alongside partner and host-nation medical teams, conducted 1,048 medical, public health, and veterinary engagements across eight Pacific nations. Together, they delivered care to 19,810 patients, trained 3,528 host-nation clinicians, and restored or repaired more than $2.6 million worth of critical biomedical equipment, strengthening local health systems and building long-term capacity.
“This mission was built by, with, and through our host-nation partners, resulting in tangible and lasting gains - from revitalizing essential medical equipment to advancing clinical skills,” said Cmdr. Krystal Chunaco, director of medical operations for Pacific Partnership 2025. “Our partners weren’t recipients; they were co-architects. Each country leaves this mission more capable and more confident than when we arrived.”
PP25 dental teams performed 7,101 procedures, the optometry team conducted 5,826 exams and distributed 8,175 pairs of prescription glasses along with more than 14,400 protective lenses. In addition to clinical care, the PP25 team also delivered integrated behavioral health support, including provider-to-provider exchanges, community mental health education, and culturally informed counseling embedded within clinical and public health engagements.
“Integrating mental health into Pacific Partnership for the first time showed just how much psychological resilience is on the hearts and minds of our host nations,” said Lt. C. Veronica Crawford, U.S. Navy clinical psychologist. “Through more than 90 trainings with thousands of participants, we worked alongside local providers to strengthen skills in psychological first aid, resiliency, and youth mental health, laying the groundwork for future missions to continue to build upon.”
By expanding our knowledge in various areas of the medical field, we increase the region’s immediate capacity for mass casualty response locations. Additionally, building and renovating infrastructures also provide a lasting impact. PP25 partner and host nation participants of engineering civic-action projects, including additions to schools that will function as shelters in the event of a natural disaster. Seabees from Amphibious Construction Battalion One (ACB 1) and Naval Construction Battalion Four also provided their construction expertise to repair schools, hospitals, and increase host nation capacity.
“The construction of the new restroom at Magiagi School in Samoa showed what true partnership can accomplish, and it will serve the community for years to come,” said Lt. Shawn Adair, engineering line of effort lead for Pacific Partnership 2025. “Across every site, improving schools and clinics directly boosts host-nation resilience, because these are the places communities rely on during a crisis.”
Host nation outreach events (HNOE) involved sports days and band performances by the Pacific Partnership Band, which comprised a detachment from the U.S. Pacific Fleet Band joined by one Australian Defence Force and three Royal Canadian Navy musicians for the entire mission. During the mission stops, the HNOE line of effort participated in 27 community relations events, 46 enrichment training sessions, 25 supported host nation religious services, as well as 55 band performances with a total of over 6,000 people in attendance.
“Every HNOE event, including band performances, training sessions, service projects, and COMRELS, helped build rapport, cultural understanding, and connection with our host nations,” said David Godkin, Royal Canadian deputy chaplain for PP25. “We hope host-nation communities remember that the U.S. Navy and partner nations care deeply for their long-term well-being.”
The PP25 disaster management (DM) line of effort prioritized partner-led workshops and exercises across the Pacific to strengthen national readiness, synchronize multinational support, and reinforce local ownership of their disaster response systems.
Disaster response capacity builds fastest when engagement is designed and executed with our host-nation partners, while synchronizing efforts with regional allies to build upon each other's DM exercises to strengthen and duplicate their readiness,” said Joyce “JB” Blanchard, senior disaster response and civil-military coordination adviser for PP25 Samoa mission stop. “Sustained disaster management cooperation in the Indo-Pacific safeguards relationships and ensures nations can expand the capabilities they own long after we depart.”
Pacific Partnership, in its 21st iteration, is the U.S. Navy’s largest maritime humanitarian and civic assistance mission conducted in the Indo-Pacific through four lines of effort: disaster management, engineering, medical, and host nation outreach. This year’s mission stops included the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, and Vanuatu. Fly-in stops for PP25 included Fiji, the Philippines, and Tonga.
For more information about Pacific Partnership, visit [https://www.clwp.navy.mil/Pacific-Partnership](https://www.clwp.navy.mil/Pacific-Partnership/).
| Date Taken: | 12.01.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 12.01.2025 16:25 |
| Story ID: | 552698 |
| Location: | PEARL HARBOR, HAWAII, US |
| Web Views: | 25 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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