U.S. Navy and 21 partner nations kick off SEACAT

The Navy and 21 Indo-Pacific partner nations kicked off the 20th iteration of Southeast Asia Cooperation and Training in Singapore on Tuesday.

SEACAT is an exercise designed to facilitate cooperation and provide support among Southeast Asian countries, according to a press release from Navy Destroyer Squadron 7.

"The exercise scenarios are designed to encourage countries to use maritime forces to enhance understanding of the operational environment, build capacity for humanitarian support missions, and uphold international laws and norms," the press release noted.

This exercise includes the Navy's Littoral Combat Ship Tulsa (LCS-16), staff of Destroyer Squadron 7, P-8A Poseidon aircraft, and personnel from Task Forces 73, 76, U.S. 7th Fleet and U.S. Pacific Fleet, according to the press release.

The Navy is also currently conducting large-scale exercise in the Atlantic, Pacific and Mediterranean, demonstrating a series of concepts, including distributed maritime operations, expeditionary advanced base operations and littoral operations in a contested environment, running through Aug. 16.