Jungle survival training at Cobra Gold 2018

BAN CHEN KHREAM, Thailand (FOX 26) - Members of the U.S. Marines Corps and U.S. Navy drank cobra blood and learned life saving skills during jungle survival training during Cobra Gold 2018 in Thailand.

Photos released by the Department of Defense show service members drinking cobra blood, eating "jungle meat" and looking at a tarantula and a jungle gecko.

Cobra Gold is an annual, multinational exercise in the Kingdom of Thailand with seven participating nations, including the United States. The exercise is conducted from February 13-23.

According to the Department of Defense, Cobra Gold is, "designed to advance regional security by exercising a robust multinational force from nations sharing common goals and security commitments in the Asia-Pacific region."

Service members with the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division were some of those pictured participating in the training. The battalion is based in Hawaii and is forward-deployed to Okinawa, Japan part of the unit deployment program.