SURABAYA, Indonesia – The U.S. and Indonesian military forces officially kicked off Exercise Super Garuda Shield 2024 with an opening ceremony at Naval Air Base Juanda in Surabaya on Aug. 26.
Super Garuda Shield is the largest training exercise conducted annually by the United States and Indonesia. It began as an information and training exchange between the United States and Indonesia in 2006. Since 2022, the exercise has been expanded to include partner nations.
This year, military personnel from the United States, Indonesia, Australia, Canada, France, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom and New Zealand will be taking part, with 12 more countries visiting to watch.
“Every aspect of this year’s Super Garuda Shield challenges us to come together, work together and achieve our training objectives,” Maj. Gen. Joseph R. Harris, chief of staff and commander of the Hawaii Air National Guard, said at the opening ceremony. “I encourage all participants to take advantage of the incredible opportunities provided for professional and cultural exchange and to use this opportunity to foster and grow relationships with their counterparts that will last a lifetime.”
Indonesian Air Force Lt. Gen. Widjargo Ikoputra, deputy commander of the Indonesian National Armed Forces Kodikrat, said the exercise was “a way to build mutual trust in the military field and strengthen bilateral military ties and multilateral relations.”
The U.S. Embassy Jakarta Defense Cooperation Office said Super Garuda Shield 2024 will involve 5,500 international troops, including about 2,500 U.S. soldiers.
The joint military exercise strengthens the U.S.-Indonesia defense partnership under the Defense Cooperation Agreement in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region, including improving the participating governments’ capabilities to securely and automatically exchange data regardless of geographic, political or organizational boundaries.
“The more countries with complementary strengths and capabilities come together to achieve common goals, the better off we are,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
Partner nations’ military personnel will take part in a variety of training exercises, including airborne and amphibious operations, operational information exchange, and cyber training in 2024.
Super Garuda 2024 will begin with expert academic exchanges and professional development workshops, followed by command and control exercises, joint field training exercises and finally culminate with a live-fire exercise.
Regular exercises and engagements with allies and partners help foster civil-military cooperation, improve contingency preparedness, and strengthen bilateral response capabilities.
Indonesia has partnered with the Hawaii National Guard since 2006 as part of the Department of Defense National Guard Bureau’s Interstate Partnership Program, which has grown to 96 partnerships with 106 countries.
