The Marine Corps is a maritime
force and is expeditionary in nature. In fact, the Marine Corps' history and legacy
is a landing force from the sea. Today, Marines continue to be trained
and equipped to come from the sea and fight America's battles. The unit in the Marine Corps
specifically groomed for the contingency
battles of the future is the Marine
Expeditionary Unit or MEU.
A MEU is based on Naval vessels and is
normally built around a reinforced battalion, a composite aircraft
squadron, and by a MEU Service Support
group totaling about 2,000 personnel in all.
Commanded by a colonel, the MEU is
employed to fulfill routine forward deployments with fleets in the
Mediterranean, the Western Pacific, and periodically, the Atlantic
and Indian Oceans.
The MEU's very existence is vital because with the decline of American bases abroad, it's possible
that the only U. S. forces available to respond to worldwide crisis
quickly will be the Marines.
The MEU is an expeditionary
intervention force with the ability to rapidly organize for combat
operations in virtually any environment.
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