Official U.S. Marine Corps U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Sgt Audrey M. C. Rampton ()

A Marine with Battalion Landing Team, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, secures gear to a Combat Rubber Raiding Craft during a simulated boat raid, on Kin Blue, Okinawa, Japan, Dec. 5th, 2019. The 31st MEU is currently preparing for deployment through MEU Exercise, a two-week evolution that prepares the Marine Air Ground Task Force for amphibious operations integrated with the Navy. The 31st MEU, the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward deployed MEU, provides a flexible and lethal force ready to perform a wide range of military-operations.