U.S. Marines with the 1st Light Armour Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, conducted combat marksmanship practice at a short bay range with marines from the Royal Thai Marine Corps and Republic of Korea Marines at the Thai Reconnaissance Battalion base in Thailand Feb. 28, 2025, as part of exercise Cobra Gold.
Cobra Gold is taking place from Feb. 26 – Mar. 8, 2025, with this year marking the 44th iteration of the exercise. As the largest joint exercise in mainland Asia, Cobra Gold brings together multinational armed forces and multiple civilian agencies in the exchange of knowledge involving training events and discourse with subject matter experts.
In the combat marksmanship training event, U.S. Marines instructed Thai and ROK Marines in close combat scenarios utilizing a 50 meter rifle range.
Col. Stuart Glenn, commanding officer of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Marine Rotational Force-Southeast Asia, was there to witness the cooperative training environment.
“We’re exchanging knowledge,” said Glenn. “We’re exchanging skills. We’re exchanging best practices and things that we have learned in our collective training. And what makes this particular event unique is that we’re also receiving all of that from our international partners here today.”
One such partner present, Petty Officer 1st Class Suttiwat Susing of the Royal Thai Marine Corps, has extensive experience with the collaborative training mission, having participated in over four Cobra Gold exercises in the past.
“I have learned many things from the U.S. Marine Corps in all the Cobra Golds I have been a part of,” said Susing. “Even today on the range, they taught new practices related to safety on the range.”
In addition to the technical expertise exchanged between service members, Susing has seen many lasting friendships result from the exercises. This fact is not lost on Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Isaiah Gutierrez, a U.S. Navy Sailor attached to the 1st LAR.
“Training like this on a range is important for our readiness, but it’s also like a bonding time for these guys,” said Gutierrez. “A lot of these guys like to shoot – American, Korean and Thai. So doing it all together gives a sense of camaraderie between them. And, of course, it helps us all understand how we operate our weapon systems.”
Lance Cpl. Ryan Bernard, team leader in the 1st LAR, participated in the combat marksmanship training and welcomed the opportunity to learn from marines of other nations.
“Training with our partners like this, in their own country and with other armed forces, is crucial to our mission,” said Bernard.
According to Bernard, a day on the range with partners and allies goes a long way toward operational familiarity and camaraderie among service members.
Republic of Korea Navy Capt. Kim Kyung-ho, commander of the ROK Navy Cobra Gold Exercise Squadron, observed for himself the marines instructing each other in techniques and safety procedures on the range.
“Through active and practical training like today with our allies and partners, we will be able to enhance the ability to conduct multinational joint operations and contribute to strengthening interoperability and military cooperation while promoting friendship among the participating forces,” said Kyung-ho.
