page_title: Cobra Gold
section_title: About Cobra Gold
hierarchical_section_title: Cobra Gold / About Cobra Gold
caption_attribution_description: English: U.S. Marine 1st Lt. Mark Caldwell shares his meal ready to eat with a Royal Thai Marine during exercise Cobra Gold 2020 in Chantaburi, Kingdom of Thailand, March 1, 2020. Caldwell, a native of Lookout Mountain, Tenn., is the company executive officer for Alpha Company, Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment. Exercise Cobra Gold 20 is the largest theater security cooperation exercise in the Indo-Pacific region and is an integral part of the U.S. commitment to strengthen engagement in the region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Jordan E. Gilbert)
context_page_description: Cobra Gold is currently the largest Indo-Pacific, multinational military exercise held in the Kingdom of Thailand every year. It is among the largest multinational military exercises in which the United States participates with allied and partner nations.
context_section_description: Cobra Gold was first held in 1982. Cobra Gold has served as a military training exercise to improve coordination between the armed forces of the United States and Thailand in both hostile military and humanitarian efforts. It also had the goal of strengthening ties between the U.S. and Thailand, the oldest ally of the United States in the South Asia region. More recently, Cobra Gold has served a humanitarian mission, as military personnel deliver health care to the local Thai population, and as a testing ground for new battlefield technologies such as solar powered weaponry.
  As of 2020, Cobra Gold has several distinct activities that highlight regional security and effective responses to regional crises. The first is the Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise (CALFEX), in which live ammunition is aimed at predetermined targets as troops advance and close in on their target. A Command Post Exercise (CPX), in which military officers engage in computerized war games, disaster relief, or humanitarian missions over several days. An Amphibious Exercise (AMPHIBEX) which combines the capabilities of ship-to-shore movement with vertical envelopment between the Royal Thai Armed Forces and U.S. military, with allied forces dependent on operational developments. A Cyber Exercise (CYBEREX) which demonstrates the multinational interaction and exchange in a scenario based on rehearsing defensive cyber operations. Ongoing activities are various humanitarian civic activities, assisting the local Thai population throughout the kindgom.
  
  In 2020, Cobra Gold is introducing a landmine reduction operation as well as the participation of the U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II fighter aircraft and the high mobility artillery rocket system (HIMARS). These new additions will enhance security cooperation and advanced interoperability to increase partner capacity in planning and executing complex and realistic multinational force and combined task force operations.
  Cobra Gold has expanded to include 27 nations as of 2020, including Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and other South Asian and Pacific Ocean countries. China was admitted to Cobra Gold exercises for the first time in 2015 as well, although Chinese military forces were only allowed to participate in humanitarian assistance training. Most nations participate in Cobra Gold as observers rather than participants. In 2020, the following countries are set to participate in the exercise: 
  Participants: the United States, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Indonesia, Japan and Malaysia
  Observers: Brunei, Laos, Cambodia, Israel, Vietnam, Germany, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Brazil and Sweden
  Multinational Planning Augmentation Team: Australia, Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Nepal, the Philippines, Fiji and New Zealand
  Others: China and India.
caption: Royal Thai and U.S. military training together during Cobra Gold 2020
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