US Marines practice water war as focus moves east

ABOARD THE USS WASP (AP) — A small group of U.S. Marines trudged onto the beach with an armada of Navy warships just offshore. Their mission: root out insurgents.

The training exercise on the U.S. coast was designed to return thousands of Marines to their amphibious roots. Military officials say the operation is the largest amphibious training exercise they've attempted in at least a decade.

Marines have been fighting wars in landlocked countries like Iraq and Afghanistan for years, and many have never set foot on a Navy ship. That's of particular concern as the military shifts its strategic focus toward the coastal regions of the Middle East, such as Iran, and the Pacific, where North Korea and China are drawing increasing attention.

"Sooner or later, the nation is going to require a sizable force to go somewhere where folks don't want us to go," said Brig. Gen. Christopher Owens, deputy commanding general of 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force.

About 3,500 Marines made landfall on the beaches of North Carolina and Virginia beginning Monday.

All told, more than two dozen Navy ships and more than 20,000 service members are participating in the exercise along with allies from eight countries — Canada, Britain, France, Netherlands, Spain, Italy, New Zealand and Australia. That is at least twice the number of personnel that were involved in a similar West Coast training exercise two years ago, and it provides a more realistic scenario for how the U.S. would likely conduct amphibious landings in the future.

Amphibious assaults were common during World War II, when Allied troops landed on various islands in the Pacific. Perhaps the best-known amphibious assault was the Normandy invasion of German-occupied France — depicted in "Saving Private Ryan" and other films — when U.S. troops stormed Omaha Beach. Since then, such landings have become far more rare, though amphibious assaults were conducted during Operation Desert Storm and the recent Iraq War.

The amphibious invasions of the past, when the U.S. took thousands of casualties in a single battle, are not likely to be repeated. The new approach military leaders are using in the exercise known as Bold Alligator involves a more nuanced approach that relies on allies and friendly countries. That means relying on multi-nation coalitions and deciding whether to stage ships in port or out to sea because it could disrupt the host nation's economy. Navy leaders prefer to operate out of a "sea base" away from shore.

This week's exercise occurs days before President Barack Obama will submit his defense budget proposal to Congress. Several members of Congress visited the USS Wasp, an amphibious assault ship serving as the exercise's flagship, in the days leading up to the assault.