The Eagle Resolve 2017 (Hasm Al Oqban) military exercise, held in Kuwait with the participation of military forces from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the US, came to an end on Sunday 09 April 2017.

The closing was attended by Kuwait’s Chief of Staff Major General (Pilot) Ghanim bin Shaheen Al Ghanim.

More than 3,000 forces from Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, the GCC’s Peninsula Shield Forces, and the U.S. participated in the three-week exercise.

U.S. forces joined Exercise Eagle Resolve which started in Kuwait on 19 March 2017. About 1,000 U.S. military personnel - representing U.S. Central Command headquarters and its components - supported the exercise.

This year’s scenarios ranged from air defense concepts, border security operations, counterterrorism operations and procedures to consequence management.

The culminating event involved land, air, and maritime forces and included tactical demonstrations of search and seizure, countering a chemical threat, and border security.

Eagle Resolve 2017 contributes towards upgrading the co-ordination between participating states to deter domestic and regional threats, he said, while noting that Kuwaiti ministries, institutions, and governmental agencies involved in crisis management and supporting security and military operations are also participating.

This is the Kuwaiti Government’s second time hosting this exercise. Kuwait hosted Eagle Resolve 2015; the first iteration was held in Tampa, Florida in 1999.

Since 1999, Eagle Resolve has become the leading engagement between the U.S. and GCC nations to collectively address the regional challenges associated with asymmetric warfare in a low-risk setting.

In a press statement, Directorate of Moral Guidance at the Qatari Armed Forces said Eagle Resolve aims to exchange experiences, raises the level of coordination among the participating countries to deter threats at the local and regional levels, and strengthens defense cooperation between them.