Pacific Partnership and Pacific Friendship conclude joint mission in Quang Tri, Vietnam

QUANG TRI, Vietnam — A two-week, U.S.-led humanitarian and disaster-response mission in central Vietnam wrapped up July 3 with a closing ceremony at the Gold Coast Hotel, concluding the first joint deployment of the U.S. Navy-led Pacific Partnership 2026 (PP26) and the U.S. Army-led Pacific Friendship 2026 (PF26).

The combined effort, which began June 22, brought together U.S., Canadian, German, and Vietnamese participants for medical exchanges, disaster management training, infrastructure work, and community outreach designed to strengthen multilateral cooperation and the capacity to respond to crises.

“Pacific Partnership’s return to Vietnam is a testament to the strength of the U.S.-Vietnam relationship and what we can accomplish together,” said U.S. Navy Capt. Robert Reyes, PP26 mission commander. “It has been truly inspiring to see our joint U.S. military and partner nation personnel integrate with Vietnamese experts in multiple lines of effort over these past two weeks. Together we were able to connect with thousands of members of the Quang Tri community, whether through professional knowledge exchange, face-to-face conversations, or our joint construction efforts.”

Roughly 270 U.S. Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen were joined by personnel from the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and German Armed Forces to work alongside the Government of Vietnam. The visit marked Pacific Partnership’s 14th stop in Vietnam and the second for Pacific Friendship.

“Our joint mission demonstrated what’s possible when partners come together to exchange expertise and address common challenges,” said Maj. Gen. E. Darrin Cox, commanding general of the 18th Theater Medical Command and Army Forces for PF26. “Over the past two weeks, we worked alongside our Vietnamese, U.S. Navy, Canadian, and German partners to exchange knowledge across critical medical and disaster management subjects, learn from one another, and strengthen the capabilities that allow us to respond more effectively together when disasters occur. Every Pacific Friendship builds on the last, and we’re already looking forward to returning next year.”

A mass-casualty drill at Hon La Port tested a joint response to a simulated Category 5 typhoon. Teams recovered mock casualties from a Maritime Administration of Quang Tri vessel and transferred them to the U.S. Army landing craft USAV Paulus Hook (LCU 2033), where PF26 and PP26 medical personnel conducted casualty reception, triage, trauma care, and preparation for evacuation, demonstrating expeditionary medical support for maritime disaster response.

Medical teams with specialties spanning optometry, ophthalmology, dentistry, neurology, orthopedics, physical therapy, biomedical maintenance, and environmental health conducted multi-day engagements with local hospitals. Nearly 1,200 patients were reached through PP26-led optometry services and joint dental outreach. “We logged approximately 450 clinical hours side by side with over 1,000 Vietnamese expert colleagues to conduct joint medical knowledge exchanges on trauma, stroke, disease surveillance, dental care, specialized eye surgery, and medical equipment repair,” said Capt. Tiffany Uranga, PP26 director for medical operations. “We additionally combined our strengths, enhanced cohesion, and bolstered health resilience in the community through our community outreach event at the Quang Tri Provincial CDC, sharing information on a variety of health and wellness topics and conducting optometry and dental screenings for local participants.”

A four-day disaster management workshop focused on irrigation, flood control, and preparedness, culminating in site visits to the Phi Vinh Reservoir and Le Ky River to discuss mitigation practices with local experts. “Our goal for the workshop was not just to sit and present, but to encourage dialogue between U.S. forces and the organizations in Vietnam that handle disaster management,” said U.S Army Capt. Tucker Adkins, disaster management lead for the Vietnam mission stop. “We had representatives from more than six organizations in Quang Tri Province here, engaging in dialogue to learn about best practices and compare our disaster management systems with theirs. We discovered that we face many of the same challenges and have found similar solutions. The ability to have respectful back-and-forth exchange was truly enriching.”

Engineering teams completed two projects: a six-room restroom facility at Quang Xuan Primary School and the renovation of four restrooms with safety upgrades at Le Ninh Regional Clinic. U.S. Navy Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 5 and Amphibious Construction Battalion 1 worked alongside U.S. Army engineers from the 411th Engineering Battalion. “We constructed a new women’s restroom facility and upgraded the existing teacher restrooms, which previously had only two stalls and 16 urinals for a student body with more females than males,” said Senior Chief Constructionman Dina Beale, senior enlisted leader for the PP26 Vietnam mission stop fly-in engineering echelon. “These improvements will significantly enhance sanitation, privacy, and overall quality of life for both students and staff.” Beale, a U.S. Navy Seabee and daughter of a U.S. Army veteran, added, “We are especially blessed to be collaborating across services to deliver something that will benefit this community for years to come and reflects the best of what joint operations can achieve.”

Volunteers also visited two religious sites and four local schools to play sports and games, exchange language and culture, and perform with the Pacific Partnership Band. At the Gio Linh Center for Rehabilitation of Children with Disabilities, teams led arts and crafts and music activities while medical personnel conducted dental and optometry screenings. Commander Geneviève Chatelois, the Task Force Commander for Canada’s contributions to PP26, said she played games and drew with children awaiting care. “It was both moving and inspiring to see how we can connect with a community through the arts, even without sharing the same language,” said Chatelois. “As Canadians, it was truly meaningful to share such a moment with them.”

Canada assigned 11 CAF personnel to the Vietnam stop under Operation HORIZON, part of Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy to promote peace and stability across maritime, air, land, cyber, and space domains. Their contributions included medical, administration, music, and teaching specialties. “We had the opportunity to build paper airplanes, but our first attempts were unsuccessful. In later versions of the construction, I helped a child draw a partner nation flag on one side and a host nation flag on the other,” said Canadian Armed Forces Lt(N) Jay Maynard. “The child was ecstatic and made it fly. I gifted the child a small Canadian flag for a job well done. It was a symbolic reminder that things in the world work better when we work together.”

The Quang Tri stop was the first of five planned for this year’s Pacific Partnership, with additional engagements slated for Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Timor-Leste. Marking its 20th anniversary in 2026, Pacific Partnership traces its origins to lessons learned and goodwill built following the December 2004 tsunami. This year is the second iteration of Pacific Friendship, which builds on the inaugural 2025 engagement in Quang Tri and is aimed at strengthening the 31-year diplomatic relationship between the United States and Vietnam through side-by-side training that enables rapid coordination in real-world crises and underscores a commitment to regional stability.