28 June 2010

RIMPAC Adds 2 participants

Malaysia and Thailand have joined US forces for RIMPAC.

Malaysia and Thailand have for the first time joined a major US-led exercise in the Pacific Ocean in which some 20,000 personnel are practicing how to coordinate in a crisis, an officer said Friday.

Billed as the world's largest international maritime war games, the biennial Rim of the Pacific Exercise, or RIMPAC, opened Wednesday for a six-week run off Hawaii.

Colombia, France, Malaysia and Thailand are all new participants in RIMPAC, according to the US Third Fleet, which coordinates the maneuvers.

"By having these nations participate for the first time, they're exposed to how we operate," said US Navy Captain Paul McKeon, RIMPAC's exercise control officer.


By: Brant

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