NUMAZU BEACH, Japan (March 9, 2022) U.S. Marines and U.S. Navy sailors with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) off-load gear and vehicles from a landing craft, utility deployed from the Widbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Ashland (LSD 48) on Numazu Beach, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, March 9, 2022. Distinguished visitors and Japanese media were invited to Numazu Beach to demonstrate how the Marine Corps works in conjunction with the Japanese Ground Self Defense Force (JGSDF). Maritime Defense Exercise Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade (MDX-ARDB) is a bilateral exercise meant to increase interoperability and strengthen ties between U.S. and Japanese forces for the defense of Japan. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Cesar Ronaldo Alarcon)