HONOLULU, Hawaii -- U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Pacific hosts the 4th annual Pacific Amphibious Leaders Symposium (PALS) with representatives of 22 allied and partner militaries from around the Indo-Pacific region in Hawaii May 21-24, 2018.

This symposium brings together senior leaders of allied and partner Marine Corps, naval infantries and militaries spanning the Indo-Pacific region with an interest in amphibious operations, with the objective of having a meaningful dialogue on key aspects of maritime/amphibious operations, capability development, crisis response, and interoperability.

We’ve had conferences, and we had symposiums and exercises, but this was the missing link,” said Lt. Gen. David H. Berger, commander, U.S. Marine Corps, Pacific. “This allows us to talk through things ahead of time before a crisis, before a typhoon, a natural disaster, so that we can be better prepared when we do show up.”

The symposium consists of academic, scenario-based and group discussions. Engagements in the Indo-Pacific such as PALS-18 and other exercises result in better training and interoperability between friends and partners throughout the region; they also pave the way for enhanced regional stability and economic ties beneficial to all Pacific people.

“The number of countries that are coming this year, and came last year really reflects on the building assurance part of our strategy that the U.S. is here supporting security and stability in the region,” Berger said. “We’re assuring our partners and allies that we will be here, we’re not leaving and we’re here in full strength and we’ll be right next to them.”