You’d have to be in an extremely desperate situation to resort to drinking the blood of a cobra to stay alive.

But that’s exactly the kind of scenario that American Marines train for – so they need to be prepared to drink snake blood if necessary, reports the Metro.

Grim photos show blood dripping into the mouth of a soldier as a dead cobra is held over his face during a military exercise in the jungle.

In another image, the man can be seen smiling as the blood runs from the corners of his mouth and down his neck.

American soldiers joined allies from the likes of Thailand, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia for this year’s Cobra Gold 2018 joint military exercise.

The boot camp in Thailand’s Chonburi province includes humanitarian components such as evacuation drills, as well as traditional military exercises such as an amphibious vehicle landing drill.

But it is the snake draining that is probably the most eye-catching of the tasks soldiers are tasked with.

Some 11,075 service members from 29 countries are taking part this year, including 6,800 from the US.

The exercise aims to enhance security cooperation, develop peacekeeping forces and maintain readiness for humanitarian aid and disaster relief missions.