US forces participate in Bright Star exercise in Egypt

Shaimaa Raafat
2 Min Read

The US, along with forces from partner nations, has joined Egypt for the Operation Bright Star 2021 at Egypt’s Mohamed Naguib Military Base, on 2-16 September. 

This exercise will build on the success of Bright Star 2018. Approximately 600 US military personnel will participate in the exercise, which was originally scheduled for 2020, but postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“This exercise is an important professional development tool to test and validate concepts, procedures, and tactics. More broadly, they enable militaries to grow capabilities, and prepare to quickly respond to demanding crisis situations,” said Steven J. deMilliano, Director of Exercises and Training Directorate, United States Central Command. 

The scenario for this year will test each country’s ability to work together to address regional challenges across air, land, sea and cyber domains. The exercise will consist of a field training exercise with a combined-arms live-fire exercise, command post exercise and a senior leader seminar to facilitate information sharing from the tactical to the strategic levels. 

Bright Star builds on the strategic security relationship between Egypt and the United States, which plays a leading role in regional security and efforts to combat the spread of extremism. The first Bright Star exercise took place in 1980 with this year being the 17th iteration. 

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