West Java, Indonesia. (December 11, 2023): In this photo by  Sergeant Shaina Jupiter, U.S. Marines with 1st Battalion, 7th Marines and Indonesian Marines with 4th Marine Infantry Brigade conduct joint patrols during Keris Marine Exercise 2023, a bilateral event to promote interoperability between forces.

Officially named the Korps Marinir, Indonesia’s Marines joined 150 U.S. troops to conduct joint fires, work with crew-served weapons, and practice using small unmanned aerial vehicles. The Marines also staged a series of community engagement events and exchanged subject matter experts on regional security matters with their hosts. Indonesia's Armed Forces include an Army with approximately 400,000 troops, a shallow water Navy, and a capable Air Force.

Indonesia is the world’s third largest democracy and the fourth most populous nation with over 279 million people. Located between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, Indonesia has been an important U.S. partner since 1949. The world’s largest archipelago nation, Indonesia consists of 17,000 islands spread over 735,000 square miles. Indonesia shares land borders with Malaysia , Papua New Guinea and East Timor and also has maritime borders with Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Palau, and Australia. The most populous Muslim-majority country, Indonesia is home to one-third of the world’s rainforests with a striking diversity of wildlife found nowhere else on earth.

The 7th Marine Regiment is based at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, California and falls under the under the command of the 1st Marine Division and the I Marine Expeditionary Force.

Joint training exercises like these increase understanding and improve coordination with this critical U.S. ally in keeping the Indo-Pacific free and secure.