Key Points and Summary: Force Design 2030, introduced by former USMC Commandant General David Berger, seeks to refocus the Marine Corps on amphibious warfare and countering threats in the Indo-Pacific, particularly from China.
-The plan involves restructuring the Corps into agile littoral regiments equipped with advanced technologies and loitering munitions. However, FD2030 faces challenges, including concerns over logistics, resupply, and vulnerability to Chinese ballistic missiles.
-While the initiative brings the Marines back to their amphibious roots and enhances cooperation with regional allies like the Philippines, questions remain about its ability to address modern threats. FD2030 is a bold step, but its success is not guaranteed.
Analyzing the Progress of Force Design 2030 in 2025
After two decades of perpetual wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, tensions increased in the Asian Pacific as China used American stagnation and neglect to muster one of the world’s most powerful militaries. With increasing threats in the Indo-Pacific, the US shifted to focus on the future of conventional warfare and the need to counter China, North Korea, and other traditional adversaries.
Force Design 2030 (FD2030), introduced by retired General David H Berger, former USMC commandant, is designed to meet the Marine Corps’ needs to combat rising threats. With a focus on amphibious warfare, small-fast teams, and denying adversaries key terrain, FD2030 looks to implement an edge for the United States and regional allies in the Indo-Pacific.
What is Force Design 2030?
During the late stages of the war in Afghanistan, former Commandant General Robert Neller stated in 2017 that the Marine Corps was not ready to face a peer-reviewed adversary. Over the last few years, Marines have primarily been deployed in land conflicts with little to no amphibious maneuvers outside the Latin American interventions, making the branch stagnant.
General Berger, General Neller’s successor and next Commandant, decided on March 23rd, 2020, to reconstitute and restructure the Marine Corps to withstand China’s vast missile and naval fleet with Force Design 2030 to deter freedom of movement to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Planning to make Marines agile and work in tandem more with the Navy in amphibious operations to respond more effectively in crises in the Indo-Pacific. The USMC will be reconstituted into littoral regiments supplemented by anti-air batteries, logistical elements, and rocket capabilities, focusing on land Marines on land-based deterrent positions such as smaller isles in the Indo-Pacific.
Reconstituting Marine Units
To meet the needs of FD2030, several Marine units were disbanded and restructured into existing regiments or littoral teams. Initially, there were 735 Marines in infantry battalions; the command plans to increase the number to 811.
The 8th Marine Regiment was one of the first to be restructured in 2021 and deactivated along with tank battalions. Later in the same year, all three law enforcement battalions were deactivated and reconstituted across the Corps.
The 3rd Marine Regiment was restructured into the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment, which incorporates a Littoral Combat Team, Anti-Air Battalion, and logistical support elements. For the Littoral Regiment initiatives, 2/3 and 3/3 were also disbanded and reconstituted in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
Furthermore, tank battalions were also deactivated to meet the requirements of amphibious warfare—particularly in the South China Sea. As Marines would need to react quickly in an island chain on small islands against the PLA Navy, tanks would be rendered ineffective in such warfare. Other artillery battalions were also redistributed to meet the needs of the Indo-Pacific.
Each Littoral Combat Team will also receive loitering munitions and unmanned aerosol systems. As seen in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, first-person view drones, fiber optics, and other unmanned aerial systems changed the face of warfare that the Corps will need to adapt to in the Indo-Pacific.
If an Indo-Pacific Conflict Arises, is the Marine Corps Ready?
Force Design 2030 is still in preparation, not just because of the Marine Corps reorganization but also because of naval stagnation. A major concern for fast-striking Marine units is the ability to produce enough durable amphibious vessels to transport the Littoral Regiments around the shallow island chains, as FD2030 cannot function without a peak naval force.
The two decades of unconventional wars not only rarely involved the Navy, but they were also in landlocked nations such as Iraq and Afghanistan. The lack of coordination between both branches during the ‘forever wars’ helped create stagnation and friction that needs to be reversed.

A Marine with Company G, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Central Command, fires an AT4 antitank rocket launcher in the Central Command area of operations, March 23, 2015. The 2/7 Marines participated in a range that tests their ability to conduct an integrated combined arms assault against a simulated enemy position. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Will Perkins/Released)
The Marine Corps is the sister branch of the Department of the Navy, and amphibious operations are a hallmark of the USMC. The ability to respond to any global crisis would be through the projection of naval power, which the Marines and Navy need to enhance.
Furthermore, the United States would need full cooperation with regional allies to project Marine Littoral Teams to the South China Sea and various island chains. The Philippines, originally passive in foreign policy, is increasing its military capabilities and enhancing cooperation under the alliance status with America.
The 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment will ultimately have to use islands near the Philippines and some sovereign Filipino isles to deny freedom of movement to the Chinese Navy in the event of a conflict. Reassurance of mutual defense and trust between Manila and Washington must be solidified for FD2030 to be truly implemented.
Potential Cons of FD2030
Force Design 2030 is getting pushback from the People’s Republic, which sees it as a threat, as well as retired and experienced generals and constituents. Thirty retired Marine generals, including every living Commandant and acclaimed generals in high-echelon positions in the first Trump Administration, expressed concerns, doubts, and criticisms over FD2030.
Outside of amphibious operations, the Marine Corps utilizes combined arms tactics, and with a renewed focus on the Asian Pacific, tanks do not fit the new vision. Marines are not just expeditionary but also a crisis response force, and the past several years of major global conflicts have shown gaps in American force projection.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has put a renewed emphasis on bolstering Europe as other NATO members continue to remilitarize, and the wars in the Middle East stretched American air defense and assets thin. Furthermore, humanitarian crises in Turkey, Sudan, and the Red Sea showed the need to continue bolstering the Navy and overall military recruitment.

120322-M-PH863-005 U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Leobardo Nunez provides security during a census patrol through a village near Khan Neshin, Afghanistan, on March 22, 2012. Nunez is an infantry automatic rifleman assigned to Alpha Company, 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion. DoD photo by Cpl. Alfred V. Lopez, U.S. Air Force. (Released)
Furthermore, placing Marines in the island chains in the Indo-Pacific does not guarantee constant resupply in the event of war, as China and America have the largest navies, and both could experience major losses. The Littoral Regiments are also vulnerable to China’s growing medium-range ballistic missiles, a major challenge to American multi-layered air defenses.
Conclusion: Force Design 2030 Will Be a Success
Nevertheless, the Marines are growing capabilities and molding into their amphibious roots, and strategic partners and allies are growing their defensive postures in the Indo-Pacific. Aside from Washington calculating where forces are needed for any crisis, Beijing also realizes it is not favored in the Indo-Pacific, and any wrong move can push a country into the region to support the US and Taiwan to contain the rising giant.
Force Design 2030 is a great plan and contingency for returning the Marine Corps to its amphibious roots in the Indo-Pacific. Still, questions remain on countering Chinese short—and medium-range ballistic missiles that threaten the Marines, resupply throughout the island chains, and whether partnered allies will allow the Littoral Regiments in their territories in the event of a major war in the region.
About the Author: Julian McBride
Julian McBride, a 19FortyFive Contributing Editor, is a forensic anthropologist and independent journalist born in New York. He is the founder and director of the Reflections of War Initiative (ROW), an anthropological NGO that aims to tell the stories of the victims of war through art therapy. As a former Marine, he uses this technique not only to help heal PTSD but also to share people’s stories through art, which conveys “the message of the brutality of war better than most news organizations.”
