By. Alexis Hill, Intern
James Bryant, a native of Rock Island, Tennessee, serves with 2nd Battalion/7th Marines, a military infantry battalion participating in the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in and around the Hawaiian Islands.
Bryant graduated from Warren County High School in 2019 and joined the Marine Corps seven years ago.
“Military service has been a long-standing tradition in my family, and I always wanted to challenge myself in a meaningful way,” Bryant said. “My original plan was to play college baseball, but when that opportunity did not work out, I decided to join the Marine Corps to gain new experiences, travel the world, and continue growing both personally and professionally.”
The skills and values needed to succeed in the Marine Corps are similar to those found in Rock Island.
“Playing baseball throughout high school taught me the value of competition, perseverance, and teamwork,” Bryant said. “My coaches always emphasized that even when you think you have nothing left to give, there is always more you can find within yourself. I also watched many people become comfortable with routine and never take the opportunity to explore the world. I knew I wanted to choose a different path and challenge myself beyond my hometown.”
Today, Bryant serves as a machine gun section leader.
As the world’s largest international maritime exercise, 31 nations, approximately 40 surface ships, five submarines, 14 national land forces, over 140 aircraft and more than 25,000 personnel will participate in RIMPAC 2026. This exercise provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring safety at sea and security on the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2026 marks the 30th exercise in a series that began in 1971.
The theme of RIMPAC 2026 is “Partners: Integrated and Prepared.” The participating nations and forces exercise a wide range of capabilities and demonstrate the inherent flexibility of maritime forces. These capabilities range from disaster relief and maritime security operations to sea control and complex warfighting. The relevant, realistic training program includes gunnery, missile, anti-submarine and air defense exercises, as well as amphibious, counter-piracy, mine clearance operations, explosive ordnance disposal and diving and salvage operations.
It is fitting that the world’s premier maritime exercise occurs as the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary. For 250 years, the United States has built relationships with international partners based on trust, cooperation, and shared values. RIMPAC is where that trust is put into practice, strengthening the people-to-people relationships that are the bedrock of all the nations’ collective security.
Bryant plays an important role in the exercise.
“RIMPAC has been an outstanding experience,” Bryant said. “Watching partner forces train together and employ different tactics has given me a greater appreciation for the importance of interoperability and the strong relationships we build with our allied nations. As a machine gun section leader, I train partner forces on the employment of crew-served weapons and the effective use of automatic weapons systems. Working alongside our allies helps strengthen our combined capabilities and ensures we are prepared to operate together in future missions.”
Bryant serves a military that operates far forward, around the world and around the clock, promoting the nation’s prosperity and security.
“Serving in the Marine Corps has strengthened my character and reinforced the values, discipline and morals that guide my life,” Bryant said. “Every challenge has helped me become a better leader, a better Marine and a better person.”
Bryant is grateful to others for helping make the Marine Corps career possible.
“I would like to thank my fellow Marines for their brotherhood, teamwork and unwavering support,” Bryant added. “The friendships and trust we have built together have been some of the most rewarding parts of my Marine Corps career.”
Hosted by Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, RIMPAC 2026 will be led by Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet, Rear Adm. Richard Meyer, who will serve as Combined Task Force (CTF) commander. Chile will fill the role of deputy commander of the CTF, and Japan will fill the role of vice commander. The Republic of Korea will command the maritime component, and Canada will command the air component.
During RIMPAC, a network of capable, adaptive partners train and operate together in order to strengthen their collective forces and promote a free and open Indo-Pacific. RIMPAC 2026 contributes to the increased interoperability, resiliency, and agility needed by the Joint and Combined Force to deter and defeat aggression by major powers across all domains and levels of conflict.
