page_title: 65th Infantry Regiment
section_title: Operation "PORTREX"
hierarchical_section_title: 65th Infantry Regiment / Operation "PORTREX"
caption_attribution_description: English: Aggressor troops, 65th Infantry Regiment, stationed in Puerto Rico, are convoyed through the town of Isabel Sugunda to the maneuver area for PORTREX. - 6 March 1950.
context_page_description: The 65th Infantry Regiment, nicknamed "The Borinqueneers" during the Korean War for the original Taíno Indian name for Puerto Rico, is a Puerto Rican regiment of the United States Army. The regiment's motto is Honor et Fidelitas, Latin for Honor and Fidelity. The Army Appropriation Bill created by an act of Congress on 2 March 1899, authorized the creation of the first body of native troops in Puerto Rico. On 30 June 1901, the "Porto Rico Provisional Regiment of Infantry" was organized. On 1 July 1908, Congress incorporated the regiment into the Regular Army as the Puerto Rico Regiment of Infantry, United States Army. On 14 May 1917, the Regiment was activated and additional men were assigned, with the unit being sent to serve at Panama. On 4 June 1920, the Regiment was renamed 65th Infantry. During World War II, the Regiment saw action throughout Europe, especially France and Germany, participating in Naples-Foggia, Rome-Arno and Rhin. Several Purple Hearts were awarded posthumously to members of the 65th Regiment.
context_section_description: The 65th Infantry Regiment distinguished itself when the United States conducted a military exercise on the island of Vieques, on the eve of the Korean War. This exercise was code named "Operation PORTREX," an acronym for "Puerto Rico Exercise." The objective was to see how the combined forces of the Army, Marines, Navy, and Air Force would do as "liberators" of an enemy captured territory (Vieques) against the "aggressors." The core of the aggressor ground forces were made up of Puerto Rican soldiers, most of whom belonged to the 65th Infantry Regiment.
  
  The liberators consisted of 32,600 combat troops from the 82nd Airborne Division's 504th Airborne Infantry Regiment and the Marine Corps, who received support from the Navy and Air Force. Despite the large number of troops deployed, the 65th Infantry (the aggressor) was able to halt the offensive forces on the beaches of the island. Colonel William W. Harris, the commanding officer of the 65th, stated: 
  The successful military maneuvers during PORTREX prompted the Army's leadership to deploy the 65th Infantry to Korea.
caption: 65th Infantry troops convoyed through Isabel Segunda for PORTREX.
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