CAMP LEJEUNE -- The War in Afghanistan may be over, but it doesn't mean the Marines get to take a break.
About 900 Marines and sailors from 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment left Camp Lejeune Saturday for a six-month deployment. Some are headed to Eastern Europe and others are going to Africa. They're replacing another Camp Lejeune unit that recently returned from the same area.
"One of the things that we did learn during our time in Iraq and Afghanistan is the importance of our partner nations," said Lt. Col Jeff Stevenson, commanding officer of 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment. "Wherever we go in the future, we will not go alone. Our partners will come with us. And the best way to ensure that we are successful in any future conflicts, is to improve the interoperability or the ability for us as Marines, specifically, to work with other nations' militaries."
The Marines will focus on strengthening ties with our allied nations in Romania and Spain. Together, they'll be supporting U.S. Embassies and responding to crisis in that part of the world.
"So then if the time comes when we we have to fight, we know how each other fight and we can be successful on the battlefield," Stevenson said.
But before the deployment--comes the goodbyes. It's the hardest part for Lance Cpl. Alejandro Muro, 21, who's headed on his first deployment.
"We have two kids so, it's going to be... a hard time, for the next six months," Muro said.
Stevenson, who's on his sixth deployment, said the families face the biggest hardship.
"Particularly the spouses, have to pick up where their husbands were and fill that void in their children's lives," Stevenson said.
It's a constant reminder that while the war may be over, the Marines are nowhere near finished.
"Afghanistan is winding down," Stevenson said. "It does not mean that the Marines have decided to just stay here in the United States. We are a forward-deployed expeditionary force. And that is what we do."