File:JDS Ariake DD109.jpg

English: At sea aboard USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) Nov. 16, 2002 — Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) ship Ariake (DD-109) cruises along side Kitty Hawk during a Photo Exercise. Japanese ships integrated into Kitty Hawk’s battle group during Exercise Keen Sword 2003. Keen Sword 2003 is the seventh in a series of regularly scheduled joint/bilateral field training exercise since 1986 involving the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) and United States military. The purpose of Keen Sword is to train and evaluate wartime functions and bilateral cooperation procedures against the backdrop of a regional contingency scenario that has direct and immediate consequences to the U.S. and Japan.