Super Garuda Shield 2024, a multinational military exercise, has united armed forces from multiple nations, highlighting the strength of international partnerships and the importance of joint operational readiness. The Joint Operations Center (JOC) is central to this effort, a command post where seamless coordination across land, air, and sea domains takes place, emphasizing interoperability and multi-domain warfare.

The Garuda Shield exercise has evolved from a longstanding U.S.-Indonesia bilateral exercise into Super Garuda Shield, a combined joint multilateral exercise. Running from Aug. 26 to Sept. 6, 2024, in East Java, Indonesia, it involves Indonesia, the United States, Japan, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, Brazil, Brunei, India, South Korea, New Zealand, and Thailand.

The JOC plays a critical role in the exercise by facilitating rapid information sharing and decision-making across multinational forces. U.S. Army Capt. Gene Maslink, the combined task force battle captain from the 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, described it as "a command post that coordinates the air, sea, and land domains of warfare."

Maslink highlighted the JOC's strength in integrating multinational partners, including battle captains, liaison officers, intelligence analysts, and logistics planners.

Super Garuda Shield 2024 focuses on enhancing interoperability among partner forces, allowing them to operate cohesively across multiple domains. This exercise demonstrates how different branches and nations can synchronize efforts in a complex, multi-domain environment. Maslink noted that "Exercise Joint Strike," which utilized intelligence assets from the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, and Indonesia National Armed Forces, showcased the task force's ability to engage targets and demonstrate combined capabilities rapidly.

Japan's participation, represented by Japan Self Defense Force Maj. Atsushi Mori, underscores the collaborative nature of the exercise.

"It's essential to strengthen cooperation with partners and like-minded countries," Mori said, emphasizing the JOC's role in deepening mutual understanding and fostering a free and open Indo-Pacific.

The exercise includes a range of operational scenarios including jungle training exercises to amphibious raids exercises, reflecting the diverse nature of military operations in the Indo-Pacific. The JOC's ability to coordinate such operations in a combined joint and multilateral context is indispensable.

Mori added, "We are in the JOC to solve problems for training and reduce friction on site rapidly, with an emphasis on mutual understanding and synchronization."

As the exercise progresses, it will serve as a critical platform for the U.S., Indonesia, and partner nations to enhance collective security capabilities. The JOC remains a symbol of unity and collaboration, with the relationships and procedures established here improving the effectiveness of this exercise and laying the groundwork for future operations. This joint effort ensures that participating nations are better prepared for the challenges of an increasingly complex global environment.

Super Garuda Shield 2024 is a testament to enduring partnerships. Maslink said, "We've learned a lot from each other so far, and we've established enduring communication systems and operational procedures to enhance our partnership. Each exercise we conduct continues to build trust and readiness between our forces."