Camp LeJeune Marines ski, shoot and learn during monthlong mission in South Korea

Marines fire on simulated adversary forces with an M240B machine gun from a window.

Lance Cpl. Aaron Duran, left, and Lance Cpl. Juan Hilario, both machine gunners with 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, fire on simulated adversary forces with an M240B machine gun during the Korea Viper exercise at the Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, South Korea, Dec. 17, 2025. (John Simpson/U.S. Marine Corps)

U.S. Marines on a six-month deployment to Okinawa spent more than a month in South Korea rehearsing urban warfare, working with drones and skiing in the dark with their South Korean counterparts.

More than 200 members of 1st Battalion, 6th Marines trained in infantry tactics, communications and intelligence gathering on the peninsula between Nov. 29 and Saturday as part of the Unit Deployment Program, Marine Corps Forces Korea spokesman 1st Lt. Benjamin Gillman said by email Thursday.

The Marines experienced “challenging climates, realistic training scenarios, and opportunities to train alongside the [South Korean marines], a highly professional and lethal force,” Gillman said.

The battalion Marines, from Camp Lejeune, N.C., have been deployed with the 4th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, at Camp Schwab, Okinawa, since August. They trained on Okinawa and Guam before arriving in South Korea, according to a Marine Corps Forces Korea news release on Sunday.

Since 1977, the deployment program has rotated U.S.-based infantry battalions to Okinawa for jungle training, exercises with Japanese and South Korean allies, and other activities that support the III Marine Expeditionary Force in the Indo-Pacific.

A mortarman checks his radio while conducting platoon attacks.

Sgt. Estevan Diaz, a mortarman with 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, checks his radio while conducting platoon attacks during the Korea Viper exercise at Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, South Korea, Dec. 17, 2025. (John Simpson/U.S. Marine Corps)

Marines line up on the ground and zero their rifles.

Members of 1st Battalion, 6th Marines zero their rifles during the Korea Viper exercise at the Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, South Korea, Dec. 8, 2025. (John Simpson/U.S. Marine Corps)

Marines run toward a building while conducting mock platoon attacks.

Members of 1st Battalion, 6th Marines run toward a previously cleared building while conducting platoon attacks in an urban environment during the Korea Viper exercise at Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, South Korea, Dec. 17, 2025. (John Simpson/U.S. Marine Corps)

“The exchanges between our units have given young leaders the opportunity to teach and demonstrate tactical skills, lifesaving care, camouflage methods, and mobility techniques,” Capt. Michael Downing, a company commander with the battalion, said in the release.

Last month, Marines with Charlie Company took part in Korea Viper, rehearsing military operations in urban settings at Rodriguez Live Fire Complex near the North Korean border, Gillman said.

The exercise included live-firing rifles on the range, training on small unmanned aircraft systems and clearing buildings, according to photos accompanying the release.

This month, the same Marines trained on skis in cold weather with South Korean marines at the Mountain Warfare Training Center in Pyeongchang, Gillman said. The troops practiced downhill and cross-country skiing using night vision goggles, according to the release.

Battalion Marines also worked with communications Marines based at Camp Humphreys to inventory, program and configure communication assets, Gillman said.

“Reoccurring Marine Corps exercises like Korea Viper and Korea Marine Exchange Program not only create more lethal units and Marines, they showcase our role as an essential fixture in the security architecture on the Korean Peninsula,” Gillman said.