NATO's Trident Juncture Exercise Ends On Positive Note

Senior NATO military and civilian officials declared Exercise Trident Juncture 2015 (TRJE15), which began Oct. 3 and ended today, a success and the readiness of the components assigned to the NATO Response Force (NRF) for 2016.

TRJE15 involved more than 36,000 troops and personnel from all 28 alliance members, plus partner countries Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Finland, Sweden and Ukraine, exercising mainly in Italy, Portugal and Spain and offshore in the Mediterranean and Atlantic.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said, “Allied troops have been tested at land, at sea and in the air. Allied forces have improved their readiness, their skills and their ability to work together in crisis situations," demonstrating "that we can deploy high readiness forces from across the alliance in a matter of days."

These capabilities were shown during distinguished visitors days to which journalists were invited in Spain and Portugal. A multinational force from 12 nations, supported by aircraft and helicopters, demonstrated ground capabilities in the San Gregorio training area in Spain Nov.4. The longest range deployments were by two B-52s which flew directly from Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, and by 500 US (plus 23 Spanish) paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division who were dropped from seven C-17s flying directly from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in a mission which included air-to-air refueling over the Atlantic Ocean.

Maritime capabilities were demonstrated on and offshore from the Troia Penisula in Portugal Nov.5 with an amphibious landing by U.S. and Portuguese Marines and British Royal Marine Commandos and the boarding of a suspect ship by Polish and Portuguese special forces and the removal of suspected toxic materials by a Polish chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear protection unit.

I was among the journalists who visited the HMS Bulwark landing platform dock which commanded the amphibious landing and from where the U.S. and British marines were deployed by landing craft. We took one of the landing craft back to the ship and met the commanders and crew and even had a meal including a curry, naan bread and chapatis. One of the crew members said I seemed surprised when I told her the lunch was good and I explained that the last time I was on a British Royal Navy ship we were served sandwiches. The British journalists who visited the HMS Ocean helicopter carrier with the VIPs were served sandwiches.