DOD EXERCISE "NOBLE PARTNER" BEGINS IN THE REPUBLIC OF GEORGIA

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

Right:  American paratroopers from Troop C, 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment 173rd Airborne Brigade arrive at Joint Aviation Base Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia, May 8, 2015. The paratroopers were welcomed by Republic of Georgia soldiers during a small ceremony. The paratroopers arrived from Grafenwoehr, Germany, to train alongside other U.S. soldiers from Company A, 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, and Georgian Land Forces troops in Exercise Noble Partner. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Daniel Cole.  

Eucom, Georgia Join for Exercise ‘Noble Partner’
By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, May 11, 2015 – The Defense Department announced today the start of Exercise “Noble Partner” between U.S. European Command and the Republic of Georgia, which will assist in fulfilling troop commitments to the NATO Response Force.

During a press availability session with Pentagon reporters, DoD spokesman Army Col. Steve Warren explained the exercise’s intent.

“Today, Eucom kicks off Exercise ‘Noble Partner,’” Warren said, “which will be held at a training area in the Republic of Georgia and will run through [May 24].”

Critical Training

This exercise “is a critical part of Georgia’s training for their contribution of a light infantry company to the NATO Response Force,” Warren said.

According to the colonel, a total of approximately 600 military personnel are participating in the exercise.

Of those 600, Warren said, 200 are American soldiers, including “Sky Soldiers” from the U.S. Army’s Vicenza, Italy-based 173rd Airborne Brigade, as well as “Dog-Faced” soldiers from the 3rd Infantry Division, based at Fort Stewart, Georgia, which will serve as the Army’s continental U.S.-based contribution to the NATO Response Force.

Focusing on Unified Land Operations

“This exercise will focus on unified land operations,” he said, “and will include a field training exercise and a live-fire exercise.”

Warren noted Bradley Fighting Vehicles involved in the training exercise are the same vehicles he announced two weeks ago were being transported across the Black Sea via ferry.

DOD ANNOUNCES BEGINNING OF MILITARY EXERCISES IN UKRAINE AND PHILIPPINES

FROM:  U.S.  DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

Right:  Philippine Army Special Forces freefall parachutists jump from a KC-130J "Sumos" aircraft over Crow Valley, Philippines, May 15, 2014, during high-altitude low-opening jump training at Balikatan 2014. This year is the 31st iteration of Balikatan, an annual Philippines-U.S. military bilateral training exercise. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Allison DeVries. 

Military Exercises Begin in Ukraine, Philippines
By Cheryl Pellerin
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, April 20, 2015 – Military training exercises begin today in Ukraine for Fearless Guardian, and in the Philippines for the 31st iteration of Exercise Balikatan, a Pentagon spokesman said today.

During a briefing with Pentagon reporters, Army Col. Steve Warren said that about 300 Sky Soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade, based in Vicenza, Italy, will train members of the Ukraine National Guard at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center in Yavoriv near the Polish border.

The United States has trained at the same center for years with other allies and partners, he added.

“This latest training, which is as valuable in peacetime as it is in times of conflict, is to establish a professional force that protects and defends Ukraine's people [and] the country's sovereignty,” Warren said.

Sky Soldiers

Three hundred Sky Soldiers will train about 900 Ukrainian national guardsmen during three training rotations, each about two months long, he said.

The small-unit trainers will focus on defensive and civil military operations.
Specific blocks of instruction include medical training, casualty evacuation, counter-unmanned-aerial-vehicle tactics, counter-insurgency training, counter-improvised-explosive-device training, and more, Warren said.

Human rights and use-of-force training also will be conducted, along with common soldier and collective tasks such as individual conduct and law of war, first aid, survival, land navigation, communication, unit operations, and counter-chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear training.

Joint Commission Plus Canada

“The Defense Department will continue to work closely with Ukraine to provide assistance, training and advising support,” Warren said, “including through our U.S.-Ukraine Joint Commission on Defense Cooperation, to Ukraine, over the long term.”

The Joint Commission formed in July 2014, and Canada was an observer at the inaugural meeting in October 2014. Later, Canadian leaders requested an invitation for membership on the Joint Commission.

On Feb. 2, Canada’s Defense Minister Rob Nicholson announced that Canada would join the commission “to better coordinate Canada’s ongoing provision of assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.”

Nonlethal Aid to Ukraine

Warren said the United States also jointly hosts two Partnership for Peace exercises each year in Ukraine, a ground forces peacekeeping exercise called Rapid Trident and a naval exercise called Sea Breeze.

The training in small-unit tactics includes instruction on how to shoot, how to move, how to communicate and other individual soldier skills, Warren added, during which the National Guardsmen use Ukrainian weapons and their own munitions.

“Thus far, we have provided the Ukrainians with nonlethal aid only,” he said, adding that the department delivered 30 Humvees to Kiev in March and will deliver another 300 in the coming months.

The DoD is monitoring events in Ukraine, Warren said, “particularly in Eastern Ukraine where we know Russian forces are contributing to the destabilization and unrest.”

Exercise Balikatan

Also today in the Philippines, U.S. and Philippine forces began the 31st iteration of Exercise Balikatan, Warren said.

The annual bilateral training exercise and humanitarian assistance engagement seeks to improve the readiness of participating U.S. and Philippine forces.
“It is a signature element of our alliance,” Warren said.

Balikatan takes place in the Philippines starting today to April 30, and about 6,000 U.S. personnel will participate this year, he said, noting that 4,100 of the forces will be U.S. Marines.

Humanitarian Assistance

The exercise trains Philippine and U.S. military forces to provide relief and assistance in the event of natural disasters and other crises that endanger public health and safety.

“This training proved invaluable during the relief mission [of November 2013] in the wake of super typhoon Haiyan,” Warren said. The typhoon devastated more than 35 provinces in the Philippines and displaced nearly half a million residents.
Military service members from both countries also will conduct combined command-post exercises and field training and live-fire exercises, the colonel said.

REPORT: THREATS TO EUROPE SETTING STAGE FOR NATO MEETING

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
NATO Report Sets Stage for Defense Ministers Meeting
By Jim Garamone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2015 – Last year was not a good year for European security, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said last week.

Stoltenberg called 2014 “a black year” for Europe as he presented NATO’s Annual Report, which sets the stage for the meeting of the alliance’s defense ministers in Brussels this week.

The secretary general discussed the threats to Europe and the North Atlantic Alliance and what NATO needs to do to counter these threats.

“Violent extremism is at our borders,” Stoltenberg said, “spreading turmoil across North Africa and the Middle East and fueling terrorism in our own streets.”

Russia is following a disturbing pattern, Stoltenberg noted, annexing Crimea, threatening the sovereignty of Ukraine, and continuing its efforts to intimidate its neighbors in disregard of international law.

“So our security environment has fundamentally changed,” he added.
Raising Readiness of NATO Forces

NATO already is moving to defend alliance nations, the secretary general said. “Last year, we held over 200 NATO and national exercises,” he added. “One exercise started every two days -- on the ground, at sea, and in the air. And they will continue. So we are raising the readiness of our forces.”

The exercises also serve to reassure allies, Stoltenberg said. “We are maintaining a continuous presence of our forces, by rotation, in the eastern part of our alliance,” he noted. In addition to reassuring allies, he said, that exercise also deters Russia, showing the entire alliance’s determination to defend member nations.

Stoltenberg stated that defense ministers will decide on the size and the composition of the alliance’s new Spearhead Force. They also will determine how to set up NATO command and control units in six of the Eastern NATO nations, turning the readiness action plan decided upon at the NATO summit in Wales into reality, the secretary general said. “This will be the biggest reinforcement of our collective defense since the end of the Cold War,” he added.

Allied aircraft intercepted more than 400 Russian planes in 2014. More than 150 were intercepted by NATO aircraft participating in the alliance’s Baltic Air Policing Mission.

Prepared to Stand With Afghanistan’s Government

NATO has ended combat operations in Afghanistan, but is prepared to stand with the fledgling Afghan unity government as it faces the threats of the Taliban and other terror groups, Stoltenberg said.

The “352,000 Afghan soldiers and police that we have trained took full charge of their country’s security,” he said. “And we launched a new mission to train, advise and assist them.”

The secretary general also discussed money. Collectively, alliance nations spent $852 billion on defense in 2014. By this measurement alone, the alliance is the strongest in the world, he said.

But there has been a steady decline in European defense spending since 1990, Stoltenberg said, “and the decline continued last year.”

Alliance Must Spend More, Spend Better

Last year, the European allies spent about $250 billion on defense -- a reduction of $7 billion, or about 3 percent. But multiplying threats changed views in European capitals, and the NATO leaders pledged to spend 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense in the future.

“We need to spend more, and we need to spend better, to keep our forces ready to deal with any threat,” Stoltenberg said. “We have seen some steps in the right direction, but there is a long way to go.”

In 2014, the Euro-Atlantic order came under threat, the secretary general said. “But … NATO is adapting and looking forward,” he added. “We stand determined to protect our values and keep our nations safe.”

REMARKS: PRESIDENT OBAMA AND BALTIC STATE LEADERS REGARDING SECURITY

 FROM:  THE WHITE HOUSE 

Remarks by President Obama and Leaders of Baltic States in Multilateral Meeting

3:22 P.M. EEST

PRESIDENT ILVES:  Let me just say that it has been a genuine honor and pleasure to host this multilateral meeting of President Obama, President Grybauskaitė and President Bērziņš here in Tallinn today, a day before the NATO Summit.  American engagement in our region’s security runs deep.  Twenty years ago, Russian troops left the Baltic states.  Ten years ago, Russian troops left -- or we joined NATO.  And we’ve all -- we’ve reached all of those historic milestones thanks to very strong U.S. support and leadership.

Our defense and security cooperation is extremely close.  We appreciate the immediate steps that the United States has taken to demonstrate solidarity with our three countries, with Poland and Romania.  In the past months, we have seen an increased U.S. air, ground and naval presence in our region as well as an enhancement of scheduled exercises.

The four of us share a common vision and goals for the upcoming NATO Summit.  We face a completely new security situation in Europe and we’re pleased that this is reflected in many of the summit’s documents.  We expect the summit to adopt the readiness action plan that will guide Allied nations for years to come through a set of practical steps and measures of reassurance and deterrence.

We expect it to provide a solid framework for allies to contribute to a stronger NATO presence on its eastern border.  Maintaining a persistent presence in this region should include, among other things, increasing the readiness of the Multinational Corps Northeast, in Poland, and giving it more responsibilities for matters of collective defense.  This would help facilitate NATO’s rapid reaction in our region and bolster security on NATO’s periphery.

A good part of our discussion today obviously focused on Ukraine.  We need to think about what more can be done to support this country.  Estonia has doubled its humanitarian and development assistance, and is looking for ways to do more, including assisting wounded soldiers from Ukraine here in our rehabilitation center.  But we should not forget about the other so-called Eastern Partnership countries.  Countries like Georgia and Moldova should not be left on their own as we focus on Ukraine.  They must have the right to make their own decisions, their own security arrangements and alliances.  Continued U.S. support for these countries’ engagement in the region is of vital importance.

We also believe in maintaining a strong transatlantic link in other areas, such as cyber and energy security.  But over the past year, our cooperation on cyber issues has strengthened and now covers many areas on both civilian and military levels.  I keep no tally of cyber-attacks, hacks and espionage, but it is absolutely clear that cybersecurity has become a concern for all of us to a degree we have never seen before -- a domain of warfare in the same category as land, sea and air.

There is no doubt that the security architecture here in Europe has changed in the past year -- and alas, not for the better.  How it will look in a year is difficult to predict given the unpredictability of so many of the actions we have seen.  But I can confidently predict that whatever the future does hold, the Baltic countries and the United States are working together globally to promote our common values -- democracy, human rights, rule of law, freedom, and especially Internet freedom.

Thank you.

PRESIDENT GRYBAUSKAITĖ:  So we had important meeting because we do have in our region today American President, and this means a lot not only for our region and security of our region, but a signal before the summit, NATO Summit, for all Europe.

Today what’s happening on Ukraine’s soil, that open aggression from Russian side against sovereign country, means that the recent attack, not only against Ukraine, it is an attack against the peace and borders of Europe after Second World War.

Why?  Today Ukraine is fighting not only for its own freedom, but it’s fighting instead of us, for us.  So why it is so important our full pledge to support Ukrainian sovereignty, support of the fight against aggression?  And, of course, we need to think about further improvement of security in our region.  And we appreciate the United States’ bilateral commitments and NATO’s commitments for our region, for the NATO members, and Article 5 commitments.

Why today standing here?  We very clearly know what we want from NATO Summit tomorrow, what kind of measures improving our security we ask for -- an updated standing defense plans, additional NATO and U.S. presence in our region, rapid reaction force, and other measures necessary to improve and secure our region’s security.

So today and tomorrow, we are talking and solving the future peace and security of Europe.  Why?  Our responsibility lies on our shoulders, not only thinking about our region, about our countries, but also about Ukraine.

Ukraine today is in frontline for all of us, and we need to take this very seriously and responsibly, helping Ukraine in every measure available in our hands.

PRESIDENT BĒRZIŅŠ:  Thank you, President Ilves, for the warm welcome.  President Obama, welcome to the Baltics.  At the beginning, I condemn the killing of American Steven Sotloff, and express my condolences to his family and friends.  We express our support and solidarity with the U.S. in their fight with terrorists in Iraq and elsewhere.

Today’s meeting proves a strategic partnership of the Baltic states and the United States.  Last year we met at the White House.  This meeting should be continued not less than annually.  Security cooperation based on shared values is a foundation of our relations.

I thank President Obama for the American leadership.  Your support, the European reinforcement initiative is very important for our region’s security.  I’m confident that the U.S. Congress will pass it without delay.  I commend the U.S. in providing troop presence in the Baltic region.  We would like to see the U.S. troops and equipment in Latvia as long as necessary.  We support U.S. efforts to consolidate firm international response against Russia’s invasion in Ukraine.  We must realize that to stop further aggression, solidarity in speaking with one voice is a key.

Today, we discussed the NATO Wales Summit.  The summit will need a clear message about reinforcing collective defense.  We’ll accept complete measures to ensure troop presence, infrastructure, and command structure in the Baltic region.

Transatlantic relations and the U.S. presence in Europe is crucial for the Euro-Atlantic security.  Europe, too, has to invest more in defense.  Latvia will increase defense spending to 2 percent of GDP by 2020.  The parliament of Latvia has passed a special law on it.  Answering the challenge of information war, Latvia will host the NATO Center of Excellence for Strategic Communication.

During the summit, we will discuss what NATO can do together to eradicate the greatest source of terrorism in the Middle East -- militant fighters of the Islamic State.

Together, we go ahead with the Baltic-U.S. cybersecurity partnership that we started last year in Washington.  We reaffirm our commitment to the strategic Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations.  We need to work as fast as possible to enable the signing of this agreement.

We wish to develop a real transatlantic bond between Europe and the U.S. on energy.  Recent developments in Ukraine are the further proof of the urgency to reduce dependency on one supply here.  Thereby, the U.S. involvement is very important for our efforts to make strong energy security and develop integrated energy markets in the region.  It would also benefit both the European and American economic interests.

I’d like to convey my gratitude to our friends and partners for the significant contribution and support in opening the OECD membership talks with Latvia.  The Baltic states and the U.S. have a shared interest in supporting economic development and good governance in the EU Eastern Partnership countries and in Central Asia.  This will be main priority during Latvia’s presidency in the Council of the EU next year.

Finally, I would like to stress that the Baltic states and the U.S. are natural partners bound by a shared belief in democratic governance, the rule of law, and respect for human rights and civil liberties.

Thank you.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Good afternoon, everybody.  I am the final speaker, so I will be brief.

I want to thank President Ilves for hosting us today, especially in these magnificent surroundings, which speak to the long and diverse history of this country and the endurance of the Estonian people.  And I want to thank my colleagues, Dalia and Andris, for coming here for this important meeting.

As has been indicated already, we last met as a group a year ago, and I was pleased to host our three Baltic allies at the White House.  The four of us spoke more recently to discuss the situation in Ukraine.  And my main message today is the same as it was last year at the White House:  The Baltic nations are among our most reliable Allies in NATO, and the commitment of the United States to their security is rock solid.

More recently, we’ve demonstrated our commitment to the additional American aircraft that have joined NATO’s Baltic air patrols, and we’ve demonstrated our commitment in the additional training exercises that our forces are now conducting.  And we’ve demonstrated our commitment to the additional American forces that are now continuously rotating through Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.  So here in the Baltics, the United States has stepped up its presence.

And we are working to do even more.  As I announced earlier, the initiative I’ve proposed to bolster the American military presence in Europe would include additional air force units and aircraft for training exercises here in the Nordic-Baltic region -- with all three of these allies.  And the NATO Summit in Wales will be an opportunity to bring the Alliance together around a plan to enhance our readiness even further, including infrastructure and facilities here in the Baltics capable of handling rapid reinforcements.

So the bottom line is this:  As NATO Allies, we will meet our solemn duty, our Article 5 obligation to our collective defense.  And today I want every Estonian and Latvian and Lithuanian to know that you will never stand alone.

I want to thank all of these leaders for coming here today. I’d close with this observation.  Nearly 100 years ago, the United States recognized the independence of the Baltic nations.  And for 50 years, you’ve endured a brutal Soviet occupation.  In all those years, the United States never recognized that illegal occupation.  All those years -- even as your flags of independence were often banned here at home -- your embassies stayed open in the United States, and your flags flew proudly alongside ours.  They always will.  Because the United States intends to always stand with you.

So thank you very much, everybody.  Thank you.

END
3:40 P.M. EEST

JAPAN LOOKS TO REINTERPRET COUNTRY'S MILITARY ROLE

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

Hagel, Onodera Discuss Reinterpretation of Japan’s Constitution

DOD

By Jim Garamone

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, July 11, 2014 – Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has held his first meeting with his Japanese counterpart since the government in Tokyo announced it would reinterpret the country’s pacifist constitution to allow Japan to take on greater military responsibilities beyond self-defense.

Hagel met at the Pentagon today with Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera and in a joint press conference afterward said the United States strongly supports the move, calling the decision by Japan’s government bold and historic. If approved by parliament, Hagel said the change would enable the U.S. ally “to significantly increase its contribution to regional and global security and expand its role on the world stage.”

The United States and Japan will work together now to revise U.S.-Japan defense guidelines. “Today, we confirm that these new guidelines should be in place by the end of this year,” Hagel said. The revisions will allow Japan to participate more fully in such areas as ballistic missile defense, counterproliferation, counterpiracy, peacekeeping, and a wide range of military exercises.

The two countries also will be able to work more closely together on maritime security, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, and other areas, Hagel said. “We can raise our alliance to a new level, and we intend to do that,” he said.
The two said they discussed what the United States and Japan will do to modernize the alliance to ensure it is prepared to address emerging threats and challenges. Onodera said he and Hagel also discussed security in the broader Asia Pacific region.

Hagel reiterated the longstanding U.S. position on a territorial dispute that the Senkaku Islands, also claimed by China, are under Japan’s administrative control and fall under the U.S.-Japan mutual security treaty.

“The United States opposes any attempts by any country to change the status quo through destabilizing unilateral actions, and we oppose any effort to restrict overflight or freedom of navigation,” Hagel said. China declared an air defense zone over the islands last year.

Both defense leaders stressed the importance of good relations with China.

RECENT U.S. NAVY PHOTOS

 

FROM: U.S. NAVY
The Military Sealift Command dry cargo and ammunition ship USNS Washington Chambers (T-AKE 11) launches a BQM-74 targeting drone during a live-fire missile exercise as part of the at-sea phase of exercise Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Thailand 2013. More than 1,200 Sailors and Marines are participating in CARAT Thailand. CARAT is a series of bilateral military exercises between the U.S. Navy and the armed forces of Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Timor Leste. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Patrick Dille (Released) 130608-N-AX577-071

Gunner's Mate Seaman Yoel Martinez, left, from Miami assigned to the weapons department aboard the guided missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54), fires a .50-caliber machine gun from the ship while Fire Controlman 3rd Class Aaron Sousa, from Lincoln, Calif., observes under instruction during a live-fire exercise during the at-sea phase of exercise Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Thailand 2013. CARAT is a series of bilateral military exercises between the U.S. Navy and the armed forces of Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Timor Leste. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Patrick Dille (Released) 130609-N-AX577-032
 

GERMANY AND SABRE JUNCTION 2012

Map Credit:  CIA World Factbook

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Saber Junction Reflects Post-Afghanistan Training Model
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 9, 2012 - An exercise under way in Germany – the largest in more than two decades in terms of the training area committed, the scope of operations and the number of participants – is providing a template for the way U.S. ground forces will incorporate the lessons from Iraq and Afghanistan as they train for future operations.

Saber Junction 2012 kicked off Oct. 7 and will continue through October. It brings together almost 4,000 participants from the Army's 2nd Cavalry Regiment and 17 allied and partner nations, as well as U.S. government agencies.

Saber Junction represents a lot of firsts as it sets the stage for post-Iraq and -Afghanistan training, explained Army Lt. Col. Eric Smith, brigade observer-controller-trainer at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center.

Rather than training specifically for counterinsurgency operations -- the focus of the center's training rotations for the past decade -- participants will conduct the full spectrum of combat operations as they also face medium- and high-intensity threats.

"The [2nd Cavalry] regiment will have to deal with enemy conventional forces that are almost as good as they are," Smith said. "They will have to deal with insurgents, terrorists, criminals and the population, as well as allied forces, the interagency and media. All of that will be out there, and all of it will affect the operational environment they are working in."

This "decisive action training environment," referred to as DATE, is incorporated in the Army's new unified land operations training doctrine. It's transforming training not just at the JMRC in Germany, but also at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif., and the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La.

"The Army has decided that there are a whole lot of important lessons we have learned coming out of Afghanistan and Iraq, and we have to keep those," Smith said. "But we can't just train for those environments. We have to train for something that is going to happen in the next 10 to 15 years, and that is what the DATE is."

The hundreds of military aircraft and wheeled and tracked vehicles participating in Saber Junction require more expansive maneuver space than the Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels training areas in Germany offer. So, for the first time since the Return of the Forces to Germany exercise series ended in 1989, participants will operate across a sweeping area that encompasses not only the two training areas, but also the Bavarian villages, forests and farmland between them.

This extended maneuver rights area, more than 1,300 square miles, is only slightly smaller than the massive National Training Center in California's Mojave Desert, said Ernest Roth, Joint Multinational Training Command's maneuver control officer, who negotiated with the German government to get the required permissions.

"We needed a lot of area to replicate the appropriate battle space because of the mission sets the 2nd Cavalry Regiment will be called upon to execute in terms of low-, mid- or high-intensity conflict," Roth said.

"It requires a lot of space to work the command, control and communications piece and all the digital constructs," he explained. "And at the same time, this gives the soldiers a variety of terrain in order for their leaders to meet certain training objectives based on realistic terrain like what they could have to fight on."

Smith called the chance to conduct the largest U.S. maneuver exercise in Germany since 1989 vital to ensuring U.S., partner and allied countries are prepared for the future.

"It's absolutely critical, as we move forward, to be able to do that," Smith said. "Because then, we really stress the units in terms of their ability to operate over distances, to communicate, to run logistics. All of those things get worked that wouldn't if constrained to just the training areas we have."

As they operate together during Saber Junction helping the notional oil-rich country of Atropia confront a litany of challenges, the participants forge relationships as they increase their interoperability, he said.

"We learn from each other and really get to work together under stressful, realistic circumstances," Smith said. "It is really fantastic to be able to bring all that together. It is something that you can't really do anywhere else."

Carefully constructed training scenarios are designed to force participants to stretch beyond the experiences many of them gained in Iraq or Afghanistan.

"As we look toward these threats in the future, we really have to go back and challenge some of our basic assumptions we have going in," Smith said. "Because we have been doing a similar mission for the last 10 years, we run the risk of assuming that this is how things are going to be for the next 10 years. But this type of environment forces people to go back and say, 'Hey, I have gotten used to doing this for a decade, and I have grown accustomed to one thing. But now I have to do something else."

That "something else" will continue to include interagency partners, said Jim Derleth, JMRC's senior interagency training advisor. He was instrumental in getting seven U.S. agencies to commit representatives to the exercise, integrating their goals, capabilities and authorities into the play.

"If you don't have the rest of the [U.S. government] involved in a DATE rotation, how can you replicate the conditions that the military will be asked to accomplish?" Derleth questioned.

Training scenarios have been designed to ensure that military participants recognize their tactical operations can't be conducted in a vacuum, and have to support U.S. government goals, he explained. "The question will be how this fits into the bigger context of U.S. foreign policy or U.S. national security policy," he said.

Saber Junction, Derleth said, will help ensure that interagency cooperation strengthened during the missions in Iraq and Afghanistan continues into the future. "We are trying not to lose those lessons," he said. "If we don't keep track of the lessons of the last 10 years, we are not going to be effective."

STABILITY AND SECURITY ARE PROMOTED BY SOUTHCOM

AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
The guided missile frigate USS Thach, left, passes alongside the dry cargo ship USNS Lewis and Clark as it pulls out in to the Pacific Ocean to participate in PANAMAX 2011 sea phase. U.S. Navy Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Jose Lopez  

Southcom Exercise Program Promotes Stability, Security
By Donna Miles
MIAMI, June 20, 2012 - Several military exercises that just wrapped up or are under way exemplify U.S. Southern Command's robust exercise program, one that officials consider integral to regional stability and U.S. national security.

Exercise Tradewinds 2012, which kicked off in Barbados June 15 and continues through the upcoming weekend, is focused on what Air Force Gen. Douglas M. Fraser, the Southcom commander, calls the most pressing regional challenge: transnational organized crime.

U.S. Marine Forces South is leading the exercise, which has brought together defense and law enforcement from the United States, Canada and 15 Caribbean countries for the 28th year to enhance their ability to work together against a common threat.

Speaking during opening ceremonies in Bridgetown, Barbados, Marine Corps Col. Michael Ramos, MARFOR-South chief of staff, emphasized the benefit of Exercise Tradewinds to participating nations. "We recognize the value of working together to confront these common security challenges," he said. "We are truly united through our collaboration and collective efforts to fight terrorism, illicit trafficking and transnational criminality in all forms and in being prepared to effectively respond to natural disasters."
Another exercise that concluded last week in Colombia, Fuerzas Comando 2012, brought together special operators from 21 regional countries for a grueling counterterrorism and special operations skills competition. That event, sponsored by U.S. Special Operations Command South, was designed to promote military-to-military relationships, increase interoperability and improve regional security.

"This is the one forum that we have annually where we can come together as a region and talk about ideas, [about how to] increase our effect, collectively, against these dangerous non-state-actor threats we face," Navy Rear Adm. Thomas L. Brown II, commander of Special Operations Command South, told American Forces Press Service.

These are just two examples of a broad Southcom exercise program that last year alone included hundreds of training and educational events, 12 major multinational exercises with regional partners and 56 medical readiness training exercises in 13 countries, according to Army Maj. Gen. Gerald W. Ketchum, the command's director of theater engagement.

"You don't want to show up on game day for the big game, when you have never practiced together," Ketchum told American Forces Press Service at the Southcom headquarters here. "And that is really what the exercise program is all about."

Toward that end, the exercise program centers on four basic pillars: security and illegal migration and illicit trafficking, peacekeeping, counterterrorism, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

The annual Peacekeeping Operations-Americas exercise that wrapped up last month brought together the United States and 15 partner nations to train in skills needed to serve as peacekeepers in Central and South America and the Caribbean.

U.S. Army South sponsored the four-phase exercise, conducted over the course of three months in Chile and the Dominican Republic in support of the State Department's Global

Peace Operations Initiative.
U.S. Ambassador to Chile Alejandro Daniel Wolff emphasized the importance of building the skills and interoperability needed for militaries to conduct vital peacekeeping roles. "Exercises like this offer the opportunity to learn from each other and to become more capable in our tasks to create a safer future for everybody," Wolff said during the May 11 closing ceremony in Santiago.

Other Southcom exercises focus primarily on humanitarian assistance. These efforts, Ketchum explained, give military members an opportunity to use their skills while leaving behind tangible improvements in host nations. Sometimes it's a new or renovated school, a newly dug well or new building to serve as an emergency operations center in the event of a natural disaster. Other exercises provide training for host-national medical staffs or desperately needed care in local communities.

For example, Army engineers and medical professionals currently deployed to Honduras and Guatemala for Beyond the Horizon 2012 are providing medical, dental and engineering support. Participants in another joint humanitarian exercise, New Horizons 2012, are providing training, free medical care and critical infrastructure in poor areas of Peru.

Officials said the efforts help address critical needs while showing U.S. support and commitment to the region. For many of the participants, the reward is getting to make a visible difference in others' lives.

"My favorite part of this exercise is seeing the work getting done," said Army 1st Lt. Johnny Robey, commander of the Missouri National Guard's 1140th Engineer Battalion, supporting Beyond the Horizon 2012 in Honduras. "I enjoy going to the sites and seeing the immediate impact of what we're here to do."

Among Southcom's array of multinational security exercises, PANAMAX remains the largest. The annual exercise focuses on supporting the Panamanian government in defense of the strategic Panama Canal.

Eighteen nations participated in last year's exercise, working to improve the interoperability of their military and civil forces to guarantee safe passage through the canal and ensure its neutrality.

"This is a theme that is embraced by virtually everyone in the region: free and open access to the canal and flow of goods through the Panama Canal," Ketchum said. "Everyone recognizes that it is clearly something of great value to the entire hemisphere to ensure that."

Ketchum cited the growing success of the exercise as partners in the region step up to assume major leadership roles. Colombia took on the land component commander role last year, and will retain it during this year's PANAMAX, in August. "They have embraced this role, and done a wonderful job," Ketchum said. "Ultimately, that's good for all of us, because we need interoperability and we need to be able to communicate with each other."

Meanwhile, Brazil is preparing to assume leadership of the maritime component role during the upcoming PANAMAX, Fraser told Congress earlier this year. Fraser called the move "an important step in strengthening the expanding partnerships in the hemisphere."

With expansion efforts under way at the Panama Canal that will increase the seaborne traffic it handles, close, regional cooperation will be more critical than ever, Fraser told the Senate Armed Service Committee in March. "I don't see a direct change to the threat or to the concerns as we look into the future, but our PANAMAX exercise will remain critical to that effort," he said.

Ketchum said the capabilities built and relationships strengthened through the exercise program have a direct impact on regional stability and U.S. national security.

"We truly believe that it takes an international approach to address the challenges we face in the region, and that these engagements are supporting that effort, he said. "We want to be the security partner of choice, and we look forward to continuing to work with our partner nations in the region."

(Army Sgt. Sarah E. Lupescu, from the Missouri National Guard; Army Sgt. Alysia Jarmon, from the 65th Public Affairs Operations Center; and Robert Ramon from U.S. Army South contributed to this article.)