The US is deploying thousands of Marines and additional forces to the Middle East following recent Iranian attempts to seize commercial shipping vessels, the Pentagon announced Thursday.

US Marines brave Arctic temperatures ahead of Joint Viking, the largest military exercise in Norway. About 10,000 troops from the US and NATO nations took part in the biennial cold weather training.

US Marines recently took on Britain's Royal Marines in a battle simulation in the Mojave Desert. British commandos forced their US counterparts to surrender before halftime, The Telegraph said.