The U.S. military launched on Friday a series of war drills dubbed "Defeat ISIS" in Eastern Syria to "hone their warfighting skills for counterterrorism operations" in the region, according to American military officials.
The war drills involved aerial assaults, including a "live fire rehearsal before departing the 55-kilometer de-confliction zone around the Coalition's At Tanf Garrison," according to U.S. Central Command.
Military officials say the war drills will demonstrate America's ability to simultaneously strike targets from the air and ground.
"Our forces will demonstrate the capability to deploy rapidly, assault a target with integrated air and ground forces, and conduct a rapid exfiltration anywhere in the OIR combined joint operations area," Navy Capt. Bill Urban, spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said in a statement. "Exercises like this bolster our defeat-ISIS capabilities and ensure we are ready to respond to any threat to our forces."
The U.S. military and its allies on the ground will communicate with their Russian counterparts to "prevent miscommunications or escalations in tension," according to military officials
"Working by, with, and through partner forces, CJTF-OIR continues to defeat ISIS remnants in designated areas of Iraq and Syria, and to help set conditions for the enduring defeat of ISIS," CENTCOM said.