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Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - For the U.S. Navy Seabees of Commander, Task Force Five Six, the construction project fulfilled a role in an ongoing multinational training exercise.

But even though the exercise scenario wasn’t real, the finished product will be a lasting symbol of the U.S.-Jordanian partnership on display during Exercise Eager Lion 2015.

In less than a week, the Seabees constructed a wood-framed 16-by-32-foot Southwest Asia (SWA) hut on a small plot of land on the Royal Jordanian Naval Base in Aqaba. Under the pretense of the Eager Lion training scenario, the Seabees were given a tight deadline to prop up an emergency medical facility after faux enemies destroyed a clinic in the city nearby.

In the real world, CTF-56 will leave the structure behind for their Jordanian allies, who could decide to use it for training, berthing or office space.

Another lasting outcome of the build, the Seabees say, will be the personal experiences and relationships they take away. Between three and four Jordanian military personnel have joined the team of seven U.S. Navy Construction Battalion workers each day on the project site.

As the Seabees and their host Jordanian partners have come to realize, military exercises like Eager Lion build trust, strengthen partnerships and enhance the capabilities of participating countries.

Led by Jordan and the U.S., Eager Lion also involves another 16 international participants, including many from the Middle East: Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Egypt, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. Approximately 10,000 total international military personnel were scheduled to take part in Eager Lion, which spanned several different sites in the host country of Jordan and a multitude of joint combined training activities.

“Not only is it great training for us, but our Jordanian partners get a lot from it as well,” said Builder 3rd Class Nolan LeMaster of Fort Madison, Iowa. “I think it’s a great exercise overall, because there are so many different countries involved – not just the Jordanians and the U.S.”

Crew leader Builder 2nd Class Bryan Fenton, of Camden County, Ga., said the Jordanian workers bring different and valuable perspectives to the construction project.

“If [their methods] work better and faster – and is still up to code – we’ll do it their way,” he said.

The SWA hut is not the only project keeping the CTF-56 Seabees busy during Eager Lion 2015.

The Navy builders put up a facility for a stable of exercise role players to work out of, installed cellphone and key container boxes at nearby Camp Badger and have pitched in standing watches to relieve camp security forces.

Eager Lion is a recurring, multinational exercise designed to strengthen military-to-military relationships, increase interoperability between partner nations, and enhance regional security and stability.

Eager Lion 2015 consists of a series of simulated scenarios to facilitate a coordinated, partnered military response to conventional and unconventional threats. The scenarios developed have included border security, command and control, cyber defense and battle space management.
Of 10,000 military personnel participating in the exercise, about 5,000 are from the U.S., representing U.S. Central Command headquarters and its air, land, maritime and special operations components.

*Dvids