U.S. Marines and their Moroccan Army counterparts conducted Marine Corps Martial Arts training together at Tifnit training area, May 16, 2010, as part of Exercise AFRICAN LION, a combined and joint exercise designed to enhance interoperability of the two nations' armed forces and forge camaraderie between the troops.

"This gives the Moroccans the chance to work together with us, test themselves against us, and work through all the different MCMAP (Marine Corps Martial Arts Program) techniques, such as ground fighting. It really builds trust between the nations from the ground up," said Captain Cole Clements, of Douglassville, Texas. "Anytime you can come to a foreign country, especially one with an excellent climate and interesting culture like Morocco, it's a great experience for the Marines."

Clements is the commanding officer of Company F, Anti-Terrorism Battalion, a Marine Forces Reserve unit based in Lafayette, Louisiana. He arrived here May 14 with a team of about 20 active duty and enlisted Marines and sailors from his unit.

Clements' Marines are putting the Moroccan troops through a grueling two-week MCMAP gauntlet, at the end of which most of the soldiers would qualify for the equivalent of a gray or green belt.

The troops spent the morning May 16 grappling in the dirt, practicing the MCMAP techniques under the supervision of Staff Sergeant Jason Oudit, a green-belt instructor.

"The Moroccans really surprised, me," said Oudit, an 11-year veteran reserve Marine from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who works as an industrial consultant in his civilian career. "They're doing everything the Marines are and taking the training head-on. We have a lot of junior Marines out here, and this is really broadening their horizons. The Marines are training hard and having a great time, and this kind of thing is great for retention."

In addition to MCMAP and other non-lethal training, the Marines of AT Battalion are playing soccer and rugby with the Moroccans and sharing tea in the evenings. Moroccan interpreters enable the troops to communicate between French, Arabic and English.

Staying in tents and battling the flies, sun and dust in the Spartan Tifnit training area further helped to forge the bond between the troops.

Oudit explained that during down time, the Americans and Moroccans talked about their families, the kind of music they listened to, sports and other common interests.

"Besides the OC (pepper) spray, it's been pretty cool," joked Private first class Christopher Cosby, an infantryman from Leesville, Louisiana, referring to the portion of the non-lethal training where some of the Marines were hit with pepper spray to familiarize them with the experience in case it were to happen during a real-world contingency situation, such as quelling a riot.

"The Moroccans are good people," said Cosby. "They've really accepted us. We've developed some solid friendships here."

See related article: U.S. Service Members Arrive in Morocco for African Lion