Photo By Lt. Charena Dedios | MADRID (Mar. 12, 2024) Spanish and U.S. officer attendants of the Spain-U.S. Bilateral...... read more read more
Along a busy boulevard in Madrid, personnel from United States and Spanish defense forces gathered for a two-day bilateral training and exercise conference (BTEC) at El Centro Superior de Estudios de la Defensa Nacional (CESEDEN), March 12-13, 2024.
“This bilateral meeting between U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) organizational representatives with Spanish Ministry of Defense (MoD) counterparts has the chief goal of increasing interoperability and building readiness of the forces from both nations through purposeful coordination of bilateral training and engagement activities out to two years,” said U.S. Navy Cmdr. Kimberly Manuel.
The Office of Defense Cooperation (ODC) Spain and Estado Mayor de la Defensa hosted the conference. It drew around 100 U.S. and Spanish representatives to design, plan and de-conflict trainings in their respective groups ranging from land, sea and air to emergency, medical, legal, cyber and special operations. In an equal showing of support between the allies, the conference leads were Spanish Marine Corps Col. Jose Ignacio Yaniz and U.S. Navy Capt. Karsten Spies.
After opening remarks, the group breaks into syndicates – or task-focused groups – to begin reviewing, finding opportunities of collaboration, and approving slides to be routed to Spain’s Ministry of Defense for final approval. This conference streamlines the cumbersome approval process by forwarding one package of engagement proposals for approval, as well as finding opportunities to consolidate trainings and increase interoperability between the two nations.
For some syndicates, the types of trainings and responses are similar between the two countries, so the priority is planning opportunities to train together in preparation of potential real world situations.
“We are going to be working together, said Spanish Lt. Col. Maria Jesus Sanchez, chief of medical battalion for Agrupación de Sanidad 1, “and for medical staff, what you have to do is exactly the same thing. It doesn’t matter if you are American or Spanish, but sometimes it’s difficult to work together if you haven’t done it before.”
By syncing trainings that meet both countries’ objectives, each side gains a better understanding of operating together in a joint environment. Sanchez also commented that joint trainings are beneficial to Spanish medical forces because they learn best medical practices for unique scenarios from the Americans. American medical forces have been involved in different wars and countries, and she viewed this as valuable information that could be shared between the two allies to improve responses.
“Interoperability is important,” she emphasized. “You never know where you are going to be working.”
Naval Station (NAVSTA) Rota Operations Officer, Cmdr. Hector Cardenas, relayed similar sentiments and expanded that these trainings are important for working out potential issues before being placed in real world situations.
He explained that operating in a foreign country can present unique challenges for U.S. Forces. By understanding the host nation processes, proper authorities and required permissions, the military will improve responses and results.
While increasing training opportunities, capabilities and interoperability are the primary goals, Cardenas also highlighted the importance of establishing and strengthening the working relationships with host nation counterparts.
“In my case, I know a lot them because we crossed paths in the military,” he said. “Every time you come back, it’s seeing a friendly face, going out and getting a drink or coffee, talking about what we want to do and what we want to achieve, it’s always better at the informal level before you jump into the formal level.”
Several BTEC attendees echoed that feeling stating their favorite part was being able to establish a working relationship with their colleague.
“Being able to sit down with my counterpart provides a closeness that is impossible to achieve via email communication or phone calls,” said Capt. Jose Rodriguez Prado, assistant training officer for Unidad Militar de Emergencias (UME) that responds to natural disasters within Spain.
Rodriguez Prado and Lt. Jeffrey Gao, training officer for Naval Station (NAVSTA) Rota, were able to discuss possible areas of collaboration to meet both countries’ training requirements in addition to gaining a greater understanding of best practices for disaster responses.
This conference was the first meeting for Rodriguez Prado and Gao but it laid the groundwork for developing a strong relationship between the allies. Since the conference, Rodriguez Prado traveled to Rota to observe the annual bilateral oil spill drill held on April 10, 2024 at NAVSTA Rota. While his command had no direct involvement in this drill, it provides insight and connections on how the two nations could work together in other natural disaster responses.
Seeing those opportunities to learn, understand, and improve cooperation is something Lt. Col. Christopher Curry, U.S. Forces Commander at Moron Air Base, does on a daily basis. As the lead for U.S. personnel on a Spanish installation, he is in constant contact with his counterpart to ensure that mission requirements are met and personnel are safe.
“Everything we do has to be in close coordination with the Spanish and with Spanish permission,” he said. “Moreover, any global threats that we face, we face together.”
The collaboration on a micro – installation – level continues to improve interoperability between the two nations in responding to larger issues within Spain and around the world.
After two days of meeting and hashing out details, the group reconvened in the main room to discuss each syndicate’s wrap up and for closing remarks. As result of the two-days of meetings and discussions, over 100 trainings and exercises will be forwarded to Spanish MoD for final approval.
“I think it was a success at connecting lead planners from the U.S. with Spanish counterparts,” said Manuel, “and assisting in operational level coordination for future bilateral exercises and training.”
The conference may have concluded but the results are just beginning to take form. Spanish and U.S. forces will begin planning the details to execute these trainings. As the two forces begin training together, the relationships established during the conference will reach far beyond the walls of CESEDEN to establish an enduring partnership that will best position the two allies for future challenges.
| Date Taken: | 04.15.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 05.15.2024 06:31 |
| Story ID: | 471105 |
| Location: | MADRID, ES |
| Web Views: | 151 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Increasing Interoperability and Mission Readiness through Bilateral Planning, by Courtney Pollock, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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