4 New Messages
Digest #4718
Messages
Wed Jun 5, 2013 11:33 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.interfax.com/
Interfax
June 5, 2013
Moscow says NATO secretary general's statement on South Ossetian-Georgian border politically motivated
BRUSSELS: Moscow says that the statement of NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen regarding the situation at the South Ossetian-Georgian border was politically motivated.
"I think that this statement was rushed and politically motivated. It is regrettable that NATO again got into a propaganda trap set by those Georgian forces which can not come to terms with the new reality in the region after August 2008," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told Interfax in Wednesday.
Rasmussen said earlier on Wednesday that he criticized placement of wire fences in South Ossetia at the border with Georgia. "Building such fences is a violation of international law and of the 2008 agreements," Rasmussen told reporters. "It is simply not acceptable and we urge Russia to live up to her international obligations."
"The alliance is well aware that Russia is fulfilling its international obligations meticulously and acts in complete accord with the Russian-South Ossetian agreement on guarding the border jointly," Grushko said.
Grushko said that Brussels was also aware that fences were being built only at a number of potentially dangerous areas, not along the entire border. "It is done to prevent unsanctioned border violations by locals and to decrease the number of detentions and in some cases arrests among other things," the official said.
Grushko said that South Ossetia had repeatedly raised the issue of the border and the necessity of its demarcation within the existing negotiating mechanisms, firstly within the Incident Prevention and Reaction Mechanism working at the South Ossetian-Georgian border as well as within the Geneva talks.
"Finally, it would have been possible to ask how pressing issues of the border regime have been resolved previously, including those related to the attempts of Georgian border guards "to improve" the border line," Grushko said.
------------------------------
http://www.mod.gov.ge/?newsid=
Georgian Ministry of Defence
June 4, 2013
NATO-Georgia Commission Session
The second day of the NATO Defence Ministerial started with the session of NATO-Georgia Commission. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen delivered an opening speech:
“I am pleased to welcome you to the meeting of Georgia-NATO Commission. Georgia is a special partner for NATO and nation which wishes to become a member of Alliance. Its commitment to NATO-led operation in Afghanistan is significant. Georgia is indeed the number one non-NATO troop contributor to ISAF. We greatly appreciate the act of support of Georgia for our operations both in the past and currently. We highly value the professionalism and the courage of Georgia’s Armed Forces and we salute the sacrifices that it made. Given the very demanding reforms that Georgia is currently carrying out in defence sector, these efforts are all more impressive. NATO cooperates with Georgia in implementing its reforms and allies stand ready to continue to share their experiences and to provide their support.
We also continue to follow with great interest the challenges and developments that Georgia is experiencing within its borders...And we reiterate our unwavering support for Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty within internationally recognized borders.
A stable and democratic Georgia has its place within the Euro-Atlantic Community. And I look forward to a future when Georgia will be the part of the Alliance. The decisions taken at the NATO Summit in Bucharest remain valid. Georgia will become a member of NATO as soon as it fulfills the membership criteria”.
Following the NATO Secretary General`s speech, Minister of Defence of Georgia Irakli Alasania addressed the ministers of defence. He focused attention to the reforms ongoing in Georgia and in the field of defence of the country, as well as on Georgia`s involvement in the ISAF mission. As Minister outlined, by contribution to the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan, Georgia reaffirms that it is not only a consumer of security but is actively engaged in establishing peace worldwide.
==============================
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==============================
Interfax
June 5, 2013
Moscow says NATO secretary general's statement on South Ossetian-Georgian border politically motivated
BRUSSELS: Moscow says that the statement of NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen regarding the situation at the South Ossetian-Georgian border was politically motivated.
"I think that this statement was rushed and politically motivated. It is regrettable that NATO again got into a propaganda trap set by those Georgian forces which can not come to terms with the new reality in the region after August 2008," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told Interfax in Wednesday.
Rasmussen said earlier on Wednesday that he criticized placement of wire fences in South Ossetia at the border with Georgia. "Building such fences is a violation of international law and of the 2008 agreements," Rasmussen told reporters. "It is simply not acceptable and we urge Russia to live up to her international obligations."
"The alliance is well aware that Russia is fulfilling its international obligations meticulously and acts in complete accord with the Russian-South Ossetian agreement on guarding the border jointly," Grushko said.
Grushko said that Brussels was also aware that fences were being built only at a number of potentially dangerous areas, not along the entire border. "It is done to prevent unsanctioned border violations by locals and to decrease the number of detentions and in some cases arrests among other things," the official said.
Grushko said that South Ossetia had repeatedly raised the issue of the border and the necessity of its demarcation within the existing negotiating mechanisms, firstly within the Incident Prevention and Reaction Mechanism working at the South Ossetian-Georgian border as well as within the Geneva talks.
"Finally, it would have been possible to ask how pressing issues of the border regime have been resolved previously, including those related to the attempts of Georgian border guards "to improve" the border line," Grushko said.
------------------------------
http://www.mod.gov.ge/?newsid=
Georgian Ministry of Defence
June 4, 2013
NATO-Georgia Commission Session
The second day of the NATO Defence Ministerial started with the session of NATO-Georgia Commission. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen delivered an opening speech:
“I am pleased to welcome you to the meeting of Georgia-NATO Commission. Georgia is a special partner for NATO and nation which wishes to become a member of Alliance. Its commitment to NATO-led operation in Afghanistan is significant. Georgia is indeed the number one non-NATO troop contributor to ISAF. We greatly appreciate the act of support of Georgia for our operations both in the past and currently. We highly value the professionalism and the courage of Georgia’s Armed Forces and we salute the sacrifices that it made. Given the very demanding reforms that Georgia is currently carrying out in defence sector, these efforts are all more impressive. NATO cooperates with Georgia in implementing its reforms and allies stand ready to continue to share their experiences and to provide their support.
We also continue to follow with great interest the challenges and developments that Georgia is experiencing within its borders...And we reiterate our unwavering support for Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty within internationally recognized borders.
A stable and democratic Georgia has its place within the Euro-Atlantic Community. And I look forward to a future when Georgia will be the part of the Alliance. The decisions taken at the NATO Summit in Bucharest remain valid. Georgia will become a member of NATO as soon as it fulfills the membership criteria”.
Following the NATO Secretary General`s speech, Minister of Defence of Georgia Irakli Alasania addressed the ministers of defence. He focused attention to the reforms ongoing in Georgia and in the field of defence of the country, as well as on Georgia`s involvement in the ISAF mission. As Minister outlined, by contribution to the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan, Georgia reaffirms that it is not only a consumer of security but is actively engaged in establishing peace worldwide.
==============================
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==============================
Wed Jun 5, 2013 2:42 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.aco.nato.int/nato-
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe/Allied Command Operations
June 4, 2013
NATO Evaluates the Capability of the Austrian Armed Forces
Story by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class VeShannah J. Lovelace
SHAPE Public Affairs Office
====
The OCC [Operational Capability Concept] team is responsible for evaluating units from Partnership for Peace nations to ensure they are combat ready by NATO standards to participate in NATO led operations...If they successfully complete the NATO evaluation process the Austrian Armed Forces will be deemed combat ready and capable of supporting NATO, European Union and United Nations led operations.
The evaluation teams were culturally diverse with members coming together from Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia, Jordan, Montenegro, Serbia, Sweden, Ukraine and Austria.
====
A NATO team of evaluators from the Operational Capability Concept Evaluation and Feedback Program travelled to the military training area of Allentsteig, Austria May 21-30 to evaluate elements of the Austrian Armed Forces as part of European Advance 2013 (EURAD 13).
The OCC team is responsible for evaluating units from Partnership for Peace nations to ensure they are combat ready by NATO standards to participate in NATO led operations. Once a unit has passed the evaluation they are added to the NATO Pool of Forces. The Evaluation is performed at two levels, NEL 1 which evaluates interoperability and NEL 2 which evaluates capabilities. Once a team passes both levels they are re evaluated on NEL 2 once every three years.
If they successfully complete the NATO evaluation process the Austrian Armed Forces will be deemed combat ready and capable of supporting NATO, European Union and United Nations led operations.
"For Austria it is important to be in line with international standards due to the fact Austria has a huge contribution to missions not only for NATO but also for the European Union and the United Nations,” said the evaluation director Lt. Col. Ronald Schmied, Austrian Joint Forces Command Salzburg, Austria. "NATO provides a tool to check those standards.”
"For NATO it is important to have an overview of the capabilities of their partners,” Schmied added.
The NATO monitoring teams consisted of NATO members from Joint Forces Command Brunssum, supported by Headquarters Forces Command Madrid.
"JFC Brunssum was tasked by SHAPE to do NATO Evaluation Level 2 for Austria's Armed Forces but not just for Austrians, there are more countries who are in the Operational Capabilities Concepts' pool of forces,” said Bosnia and Herzegovina Army and JFC Brunssum OCC staff officer Lt. Col. Edin Fako.
The evaluation teams were culturally diverse with members coming together from Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia, Jordan, Montenegro, Serbia, Sweden, Ukraine and Austria.
"The OCC program gives my country a new experience and gives us more [opportunities to contribute to] NATO countries,” said one of the evaluators Jordanian Army Lt. Col. Aldababeh Suleiman, Jordan Forces Headquarters.
"We have evaluators from different partner countries, it’s an international partner community...so it’s very good that we are together to learn, to get some experiences from all sources of NATO countries but at the same time the partner countries can share their experiences in different fields,” added Fako.
During the two weeks of the evaluation the Austrian Armed Forces were tested in three different phases, beginning with an in barracks inspection which focused on checking the units’ documentation and plans, as well as material and communication (logistics) and some administration issues. The second phase was the field inspection followed by a live exercise.
"During the in barracks inspection part it is essential to check all the equipment, to check all the communications,” Schmied added. "Is it in line with NATO standards? We check the personnel strength. Is it in line with the Allied Forces standards? And the main focus the field inspection, are the units able to fulfill the tasks in the field?”
During this particular exercise there were eight units ranging in sizes from team level to Platoon and company level elements participating in the evaluation. Units being evaluated for the first time on NATO evaluation level 2 included a Military Police platoon, Civil Military Cooperation (CIMIC) Team, Human Intelligence (HUMINT) Team, Psychological Operations (PSYOPS) Team, Engineer Construction Company and an Explosive Ordinance (EOD) Platoon. The NEL2 Re evaluation centered around a Reconnaissance (RECCE) Company and a Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN).
"We try to fulfill the NATO standards as good as possible. All our directives are written and translated from the NATO standards and we implemented them so that every soldier from the company is used to the NATO standards. [But] there are not so many differences between the Austrian standards and the NATO standards. We have other weapons and other uniforms but the way we execute for example a decontamination sight or we seize an assembly area is the same way like a Norwegian guy or a soldier from Great Britain, France or the United States fulfills this task,” said Austrian Army Capt. Paul Schoenbacher, Company Commander CBRN Defense Company Korneuburg, Vienna.
The OCC program does more than just serve to add combat ready units to the pool of NATO assets. It also gives partner nations the opportunity to learn from each other’s experiences in different field environments.
"We should try this in the future more and more because of that cooperation we can learn a lot. For example my chief evaluator has much more experience in real missions with real threats with injured soldiers and things like that. So with Partnership for Peace we have a lot of opportunities to learn from those other countries and we can develop our own standards, we can develop our own company. We can try to get used to our missions in a very good way,” said Schoenbacher.
"We are here mostly on our own, Austrians evaluating Austrians. When we bring in other nations it gives us some kind of neutrality. They see things a bit different, they see things that we might not see. And on the other hand we have NATO members who are very skilled and have the knowledge on all the processes that can guide us for the evaluation,” said Deputy Evaluation Director, Austrian Armed Forces Col. Werner Kross, Vorarlberg, Austria.
Overall the evaluation process was a valuable experience for all parties involved. The general consensus was that working together with all the partner nations gave everyone the opportunity to gain from each nation and each team members’ experiences and allowed the Austrian Armed Forces a sense of neutrality in the grading procedures.
"The whole evaluation organization is multinational. So no evaluation team is purely Austrian Armed Forces manned, all evaluation teams are mixed teams. That kind of evaluation organization guarantees transparency. I think that is the highlight for this evaluation,” said Schmied.
As for the CBRN company despite the hard work and training involved in preparing for the evaluation they welcomed and appreciated the opportunity to view themselves as seen through the eyes of others.
"Due to the NATO Evaluation Level 2 for us it’s a very tough time, tough days. All my soldiers try to give their best and it’s very important for each company commander for each platoon leader that there is every two or three years somebody who holds a mirror in front of you so that you can see in what things are we good and what things we have to improve and in what things we are not so good in fulfilling our tasks because otherwise no development would be possible,” added Schoenbacher.
According to members of the NATO evaluation team Schoenbacher and his team were not far off their target.
"The unit is doing very well, it’s obvious they know what to do and it’s obvious they’ve been trained well,” said Fako. Hopefully we’ll have more events like this in the future and more units will be ready for NATO led operations.”
==============================
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http://groups.yahoo.com/group/
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http://rickrozoff.wordpress.co
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==============================
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe/Allied Command Operations
June 4, 2013
NATO Evaluates the Capability of the Austrian Armed Forces
Story by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class VeShannah J. Lovelace
SHAPE Public Affairs Office
====
The OCC [Operational Capability Concept] team is responsible for evaluating units from Partnership for Peace nations to ensure they are combat ready by NATO standards to participate in NATO led operations...If they successfully complete the NATO evaluation process the Austrian Armed Forces will be deemed combat ready and capable of supporting NATO, European Union and United Nations led operations.
The evaluation teams were culturally diverse with members coming together from Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia, Jordan, Montenegro, Serbia, Sweden, Ukraine and Austria.
====
A NATO team of evaluators from the Operational Capability Concept Evaluation and Feedback Program travelled to the military training area of Allentsteig, Austria May 21-30 to evaluate elements of the Austrian Armed Forces as part of European Advance 2013 (EURAD 13).
The OCC team is responsible for evaluating units from Partnership for Peace nations to ensure they are combat ready by NATO standards to participate in NATO led operations. Once a unit has passed the evaluation they are added to the NATO Pool of Forces. The Evaluation is performed at two levels, NEL 1 which evaluates interoperability and NEL 2 which evaluates capabilities. Once a team passes both levels they are re evaluated on NEL 2 once every three years.
If they successfully complete the NATO evaluation process the Austrian Armed Forces will be deemed combat ready and capable of supporting NATO, European Union and United Nations led operations.
"For Austria it is important to be in line with international standards due to the fact Austria has a huge contribution to missions not only for NATO but also for the European Union and the United Nations,” said the evaluation director Lt. Col. Ronald Schmied, Austrian Joint Forces Command Salzburg, Austria. "NATO provides a tool to check those standards.”
"For NATO it is important to have an overview of the capabilities of their partners,” Schmied added.
The NATO monitoring teams consisted of NATO members from Joint Forces Command Brunssum, supported by Headquarters Forces Command Madrid.
"JFC Brunssum was tasked by SHAPE to do NATO Evaluation Level 2 for Austria's Armed Forces but not just for Austrians, there are more countries who are in the Operational Capabilities Concepts' pool of forces,” said Bosnia and Herzegovina Army and JFC Brunssum OCC staff officer Lt. Col. Edin Fako.
The evaluation teams were culturally diverse with members coming together from Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia, Jordan, Montenegro, Serbia, Sweden, Ukraine and Austria.
"The OCC program gives my country a new experience and gives us more [opportunities to contribute to] NATO countries,” said one of the evaluators Jordanian Army Lt. Col. Aldababeh Suleiman, Jordan Forces Headquarters.
"We have evaluators from different partner countries, it’s an international partner community...so it’s very good that we are together to learn, to get some experiences from all sources of NATO countries but at the same time the partner countries can share their experiences in different fields,” added Fako.
During the two weeks of the evaluation the Austrian Armed Forces were tested in three different phases, beginning with an in barracks inspection which focused on checking the units’ documentation and plans, as well as material and communication (logistics) and some administration issues. The second phase was the field inspection followed by a live exercise.
"During the in barracks inspection part it is essential to check all the equipment, to check all the communications,” Schmied added. "Is it in line with NATO standards? We check the personnel strength. Is it in line with the Allied Forces standards? And the main focus the field inspection, are the units able to fulfill the tasks in the field?”
During this particular exercise there were eight units ranging in sizes from team level to Platoon and company level elements participating in the evaluation. Units being evaluated for the first time on NATO evaluation level 2 included a Military Police platoon, Civil Military Cooperation (CIMIC) Team, Human Intelligence (HUMINT) Team, Psychological Operations (PSYOPS) Team, Engineer Construction Company and an Explosive Ordinance (EOD) Platoon. The NEL2 Re evaluation centered around a Reconnaissance (RECCE) Company and a Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN).
"We try to fulfill the NATO standards as good as possible. All our directives are written and translated from the NATO standards and we implemented them so that every soldier from the company is used to the NATO standards. [But] there are not so many differences between the Austrian standards and the NATO standards. We have other weapons and other uniforms but the way we execute for example a decontamination sight or we seize an assembly area is the same way like a Norwegian guy or a soldier from Great Britain, France or the United States fulfills this task,” said Austrian Army Capt. Paul Schoenbacher, Company Commander CBRN Defense Company Korneuburg, Vienna.
The OCC program does more than just serve to add combat ready units to the pool of NATO assets. It also gives partner nations the opportunity to learn from each other’s experiences in different field environments.
"We should try this in the future more and more because of that cooperation we can learn a lot. For example my chief evaluator has much more experience in real missions with real threats with injured soldiers and things like that. So with Partnership for Peace we have a lot of opportunities to learn from those other countries and we can develop our own standards, we can develop our own company. We can try to get used to our missions in a very good way,” said Schoenbacher.
"We are here mostly on our own, Austrians evaluating Austrians. When we bring in other nations it gives us some kind of neutrality. They see things a bit different, they see things that we might not see. And on the other hand we have NATO members who are very skilled and have the knowledge on all the processes that can guide us for the evaluation,” said Deputy Evaluation Director, Austrian Armed Forces Col. Werner Kross, Vorarlberg, Austria.
Overall the evaluation process was a valuable experience for all parties involved. The general consensus was that working together with all the partner nations gave everyone the opportunity to gain from each nation and each team members’ experiences and allowed the Austrian Armed Forces a sense of neutrality in the grading procedures.
"The whole evaluation organization is multinational. So no evaluation team is purely Austrian Armed Forces manned, all evaluation teams are mixed teams. That kind of evaluation organization guarantees transparency. I think that is the highlight for this evaluation,” said Schmied.
As for the CBRN company despite the hard work and training involved in preparing for the evaluation they welcomed and appreciated the opportunity to view themselves as seen through the eyes of others.
"Due to the NATO Evaluation Level 2 for us it’s a very tough time, tough days. All my soldiers try to give their best and it’s very important for each company commander for each platoon leader that there is every two or three years somebody who holds a mirror in front of you so that you can see in what things are we good and what things we have to improve and in what things we are not so good in fulfilling our tasks because otherwise no development would be possible,” added Schoenbacher.
According to members of the NATO evaluation team Schoenbacher and his team were not far off their target.
"The unit is doing very well, it’s obvious they know what to do and it’s obvious they’ve been trained well,” said Fako. Hopefully we’ll have more events like this in the future and more units will be ready for NATO led operations.”
==============================
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http://rickrozoff.wordpress.co
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stopnato-subscribe@yahoogroups
==============================
Wed Jun 5, 2013 2:42 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.defense.gov/news/ne
U.S. Department of Defense
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2013
Hagel Praises Spain in Meeting With Defense Minister
WASHINGTON: Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel met with Spanish Defense Minister Pedro Morenes in Brussels today during a conference of NATO defense ministers, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said.
In a statement summarizing the meeting, Little said Hagel praised Spain for its critical support for a number of U.S. national security priorities and for its role as a NATO ally, and that he expressed his appreciation for Spain's support and sacrifices in Afghanistan.
"Secretary Hagel also noted that because of Spain's agreement to host four Aegis ships at Rota, the alliance is significantly boosting its combined naval capabilities in the Mediterranean, which will offer increased opportunities to partner on exercises, training, and maritime operations, and ultimately enhance both regional and global security,” Little said.
In addition, the press secretary said, Hagel thanked Morenes for Spain’s recent agreement to host a U.S. Marine crisis response unit for at least a year. That, he added, will allow the United States to provide rapid and responsive support as needed to U.S. embassy staff in the U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Central Command areas of responsibility.
The two defense leaders agreed that their staffs will continue to seek ways to broaden and deepen the bilateral defense relationship between the United States and Spain, Little said.
==============================
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==============================
U.S. Department of Defense
American Forces Press Service
June 5, 2013
Hagel Praises Spain in Meeting With Defense Minister
WASHINGTON: Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel met with Spanish Defense Minister Pedro Morenes in Brussels today during a conference of NATO defense ministers, Pentagon Press Secretary George Little said.
In a statement summarizing the meeting, Little said Hagel praised Spain for its critical support for a number of U.S. national security priorities and for its role as a NATO ally, and that he expressed his appreciation for Spain's support and sacrifices in Afghanistan.
"Secretary Hagel also noted that because of Spain's agreement to host four Aegis ships at Rota, the alliance is significantly boosting its combined naval capabilities in the Mediterranean, which will offer increased opportunities to partner on exercises, training, and maritime operations, and ultimately enhance both regional and global security,” Little said.
In addition, the press secretary said, Hagel thanked Morenes for Spain’s recent agreement to host a U.S. Marine crisis response unit for at least a year. That, he added, will allow the United States to provide rapid and responsive support as needed to U.S. embassy staff in the U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Central Command areas of responsibility.
The two defense leaders agreed that their staffs will continue to seek ways to broaden and deepen the bilateral defense relationship between the United States and Spain, Little said.
==============================
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==============================
Thu Jun 6, 2013 6:23 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.aco.nato.int/natos-
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied Command Operations
June 6, 2013
NATO'S FORWARD AIR CONTROLLERS TRAINED SKILLS IN LATVIA
====
NATO's AIRCOM regularly conducts these BRTEs in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia reaffirming commitment and solidarity to the region. While some NATO countries deploy their fighter aircraft to ensure the territorial integrity of the three Baltic States, the latter make available air bases, air command and control entities and critically needed capabilities like the FAC personnel.
====
On 29 and 30 May, Forward Air Controllers (FACs) from Latvia, Lithuania and Poland cooperated with Allied fighters and helicopters from France, Estonia and Latvia and to train their skills in coordinating airborne missions in support of ground forces in fictitious scenarios at Adazi Training Area in Latvia.
During the fifteenth Baltic Region Training Event (BRTE XV) the FACs conducted air-to-ground training to prepare for their pending deployment to NATO's ISAF operation in Afghanistan. FACs are usually employed on the ground to tell the pilots in their aircraft exactly where to go and employ their weapons or to guide them to their destination in support of friendly forces on the ground. They are indispensible especially in the ISAF scenario to ensure aircraft are employed to maximise precision and minimise undesired effects.
"This is the fourth time we've come to Adazi Training Area to train FACs and pilots for their real-world duties in Afghanistan. Even if NATO's combat mission there will end soon, it is important that we maintain the FAC capability for potential future operations. Here at Adazi we have everything we need to provide FACs with challenging scenarios and we benefit from aerial support for the training from aircraft that are already stationed up here," said Lieutenant Colonel Oliver Habel, project officer for the FAC training from NATO's single Air Command at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.
The synergy of efforts LtCol Habel referred to is due to the French Air Force detachment stationed at Siauliai, Lithuania, until the end of August. Their Mirage F1CR execute the NATO Air Policing mission for the Baltic countries; during BRTE XV the Mirage engaged a fictitious enemy force with their on-board cannon in support of friendly forces on the ground. In addition, an Estonian L-39 light fighter aircraft as well as a Latvian Mi-17 helicopter also simulated providing air support for the FACs.
"I am very pleased with the training event in Adazi Training Area which once again assured the great importance of NATO's smart defence initiative. Not only the pilots of Allies who provide the air policing over the Baltic States but also the Latvian air controllers gained valuable skills during this training. Participation of the Air Defence Unit of the Latvian National Armed Forces also acknowledges our will to use every opportunity provided by our Allies to strengthen our defence capabilities," stressed Dr Artis Pabriks, the Minister of Defence of Latvia.
NATO's AIRCOM regularly conducts these BRTEs in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia reaffirming commitment and solidarity to the region. While some NATO countries deploy their fighter aircraft to ensure the territorial integrity of the three Baltic States, the latter make available air bases, air command and control entities and critically needed capabilities like the FAC personnel.
The next opportunity to train NATO FACs is scheduled in the Czech Republic and will occur in September during Exercise Ramstein Rover 2013.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied Command Operations
June 6, 2013
NATO'S FORWARD AIR CONTROLLERS TRAINED SKILLS IN LATVIA
====
NATO's AIRCOM regularly conducts these BRTEs in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia reaffirming commitment and solidarity to the region. While some NATO countries deploy their fighter aircraft to ensure the territorial integrity of the three Baltic States, the latter make available air bases, air command and control entities and critically needed capabilities like the FAC personnel.
====
On 29 and 30 May, Forward Air Controllers (FACs) from Latvia, Lithuania and Poland cooperated with Allied fighters and helicopters from France, Estonia and Latvia and to train their skills in coordinating airborne missions in support of ground forces in fictitious scenarios at Adazi Training Area in Latvia.
During the fifteenth Baltic Region Training Event (BRTE XV) the FACs conducted air-to-ground training to prepare for their pending deployment to NATO's ISAF operation in Afghanistan. FACs are usually employed on the ground to tell the pilots in their aircraft exactly where to go and employ their weapons or to guide them to their destination in support of friendly forces on the ground. They are indispensible especially in the ISAF scenario to ensure aircraft are employed to maximise precision and minimise undesired effects.
"This is the fourth time we've come to Adazi Training Area to train FACs and pilots for their real-world duties in Afghanistan. Even if NATO's combat mission there will end soon, it is important that we maintain the FAC capability for potential future operations. Here at Adazi we have everything we need to provide FACs with challenging scenarios and we benefit from aerial support for the training from aircraft that are already stationed up here," said Lieutenant Colonel Oliver Habel, project officer for the FAC training from NATO's single Air Command at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.
The synergy of efforts LtCol Habel referred to is due to the French Air Force detachment stationed at Siauliai, Lithuania, until the end of August. Their Mirage F1CR execute the NATO Air Policing mission for the Baltic countries; during BRTE XV the Mirage engaged a fictitious enemy force with their on-board cannon in support of friendly forces on the ground. In addition, an Estonian L-39 light fighter aircraft as well as a Latvian Mi-17 helicopter also simulated providing air support for the FACs.
"I am very pleased with the training event in Adazi Training Area which once again assured the great importance of NATO's smart defence initiative. Not only the pilots of Allies who provide the air policing over the Baltic States but also the Latvian air controllers gained valuable skills during this training. Participation of the Air Defence Unit of the Latvian National Armed Forces also acknowledges our will to use every opportunity provided by our Allies to strengthen our defence capabilities," stressed Dr Artis Pabriks, the Minister of Defence of Latvia.
NATO's AIRCOM regularly conducts these BRTEs in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia reaffirming commitment and solidarity to the region. While some NATO countries deploy their fighter aircraft to ensure the territorial integrity of the three Baltic States, the latter make available air bases, air command and control entities and critically needed capabilities like the FAC personnel.
The next opportunity to train NATO FACs is scheduled in the Czech Republic and will occur in September during Exercise Ramstein Rover 2013.
