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BANTEN, Indonesia — Personnel from the U.S. Army Pacific’s 18th Theater Medical Command have arrived in Banten Province on the island of Java to serve as the Army Forces Headquarters for Exercise Trident Resolve 2026, taking place Sept. 20-26. Co-hosted by the United States and Indonesia, the field training event is the first under the ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus framework to integrate three Experts’ Working Groups: Military Medicine, Cybersecurity, and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief.
“Trident Resolve 2026 is a tremendous opportunity for us to advance vital health security cooperation and enhance joint interoperability,” said U.S. Army Maj. Gen. E. Darrin Cox, commanding general of the 18th TMC and co-chair of the Military Medicine Experts’ Working Group. “Over the next week, the 18th TMC, alongside our Army augmentees and sister services, will strengthen critical bonds with ASEAN partners, ensuring our collective medical, cyber and disaster response forces are prepared to prevail in the face of regional crises.”
As the lead U.S. Army Pacific unit for the exercise, the 18th Theater Medical Command is charged with command, control and coordination of all participating U.S. Army forces and individual augmentees. The headquarters is supported by I Corps, the 62nd Medical Brigade and the 8th Theater Sustainment Command.
Scenario-based training will center on a multinational response to an earthquake and tsunami in western Indonesia. Alongside the simulations, joint and combined forces will carry out real-world projects such as public health screenings, facility renovations and infectious disease subject-matter exchanges intended to benefit local communities.
Participating nations include the 11 ASEAN member states and ADMM-Plus dialogue partners, among them Australia, India, Japan, New Zealand and the Republic of Korea.
The exercise is intended to reinforce U.S. support for ASEAN centrality and a free, open and resilient Pacific, and aligns with U.S. Army Pacific priorities that emphasize investing in people, strengthening partnerships, prevailing in crisis and driving continuous transformation across the region.
