DOD Support to the Southern Border

Army Brig. Gen. Thaddeus D. Fineran, left, deputy director of operations, U.S. Northern Command, discusses National Defense Area signage with Coast Guardsmen near McAllen, Texas, July 27, 2025. The signs clearly mark designated defense areas and warn of the consequences of unauthorized entry along the border.

Vessels from the Border Patrol and Coast Guard patrol the recently established Rio Grande Valley National Defense Area near McAllen, Texas, July 27, 2025. Joint Task Force Southern Border is supporting U.S. Customs and Border Protection to achieve 100% operational control of the southern border.

Army Spc. Jean-Pierre Muniz teaches a group of soldiers how to properly assemble and operate a drone during Project Flytrap at Joint Multinational Readiness Center, Hohenfels Training Area, Germany, June 19, 2025. Project Flytrap involves a series of training scenarios that test the capabilities of new, lower-cost and portable technology against adversary drone threats.

A soldier assigned to 3rd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, practices targeting an incoming drone during Project Flytrap at Joint Multinational Readiness Center, Hohenfels Training Area, Germany, June 9, 2025.

Joseph Humire, deputy assistant secretary of defense for Western Hemisphere affairs, and Army Lt. Col. Kyle Brown, assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border, discuss how Stryker armored vehicles help the Border Patrol secure the border near Nogales, Ariz., July 28, 2025. This visit facilitates and informs policy to enhance border resources for future implementation.

Army Col. Jennifer Mykins, deputy commanding officer of sustainment for Joint Task Force Southern Border, pointing, briefs Jonathan Owen, acting deputy assistant secretary of defense for homeland defense integration and defense support to civil authorities, on border areas of interest from an Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter near Nogales, Ariz., July 26, 2025. The visit was designed to facilitate and inform border policies for future implementation.

Soldiers assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border prepare to sling load a Humvee to a CH-47 Chinook during training at Fort Bliss, Texas, July 16, 2025. Sling-load capabilities allow for equipment up to 25,000 pounds to be transported by helicopter to remote areas of the border.

Army Spc. Benjamin Bell, left, and Sgt. Mackenzie Jones, Washington National Guard snipers assigned to the 81st Stryker Brigade Combat Team's Long Range Surveillance Section, launch a drone during field training exercise Raven Focus at Yakima Training Center, Wash., July 20, 2025. Soldiers assigned to the unit incorporated drone technology and surveillance tactics in preparation for its transition into a multifunctional reconnaissance company.

Army Sgt. Dominique Green assembles a disruption system for neutralizing improvised explosive devices during training at U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria, Germany, July 8, 2025.

Marine Corps Cpl. Nathan Baptiste, a small unmanned aircraft system operator assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border, operates a Skydio X2D drone during a reconnaissance patrol near Yuma, Ariz., July 21, 2025.

Soldiers assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border and U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel carry simulated casualties to a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter during medevac training near El Paso, Texas, July 11, 2025. The training enhances medical evacuation skills, reinforces interagency collaboration and improves air-ground coordination to ensure rapid, safe transport of casualties.

Soldiers assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border sling load a Humvee to a CH-47 Chinook during training at Fort Bliss, Texas, July 16, 2025. Sling-load capabilities allow for equipment up to 25,000 pounds to be transported by helicopter to remote areas of the border.

Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Alejandro Soto, an infantry rifleman assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border, prepares materials for barrier reinforcement in Yuma, Ariz., July 24, 2025.

Army Cpl. Tyrique Carter, right, assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border, teaches Marine Corps Sgt. Zachary Obrecht how to operate a Dronebuster device to counter small unmanned aircraft systems during training in Yuma, Ariz., July 20, 2025.

Marine Corps Cpl. Jack Miller, assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border, practices operating a Dronebuster to counter small unmanned aircraft systems during training in Yuma, Ariz., July 20, 2025.

Army Sgt. Alexis Rohrer, assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border, inspects the underside of an MQ-1C Gray Eagle drone from its hangar at Libby Army Airfield, Fort Huachuca, Ariz., July 21, 2025.

An MQ-1C Gray Eagle drone assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border is prepared for deployment in a hangar at Fort Huachuca's Libby Army Airfield, Ariz., July 21, 2025.

Army Sgt. Leigh Jacobs, assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border, performs maintenance on a Border Patrol truck at a garage in Nogales, Ariz., July 23, 2025. The collaboration reinforces mission readiness and enhances operational capabilities along the southern border.

From left, Army Pvt. Aidan Keimig and Cpl. Gabriel Miranda, assigned to Joint Task Force Southern Border, identify suspicious items near El Paso, Texas, July 23, 2025.

Army Capt. Colton Horton, left, briefs Lt. Gen. Kevin D. Admiral on Joint Task Force Southern Border's efforts to protect the territorial integrity of the U.S. at Santa Teresa, N.M., July 23, 2025.