The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Higgins (DDG 76), USS McCampbell (DDG 85) and USS Dewey (DDG 105), Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Maya-class guided-missile destroyer JS Haguro (DDH 180), Republic of Korea Navy Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin-class destroyer ROKS Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin (DDH-975), and Sejong the Great-class destroyer ROKS Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong (DDG 993) steam in formation during Freedom Edge 24-2 in the East China Sea, Nov. 13, 2024. Freedom Edge demonstrates a new era of trilateral cooperation to ensure peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula and the Indo-Pacific. George Washington is 7th Fleet’s premier forward-deployed aircraft carrier, a long-standing symbol of the United States’ commitment to maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific region, while operating alongside Allies and partners across the U.S. Navy’s largest numbered fleet. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Geoffrey L. Ottinger)