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    U.S. Army EOD Soldiers to participate in multinational Ardent Defender exercise in Canada

    U.S. Army EOD Soldiers to participate in multinational Ardent Defender exercise in Canada

    Courtesy Photo | An Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician prepares to defeat a waterborne explosive...... read more read more

    BORDEN, ON, CANADA

    09.16.2021

    Story by Walter Ham  

    20th CBRNE Command

    CANADIAN FORCES BASE BORDEN, Ontario, Canada – U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal Soldiers will be training with military and law enforcement personnel from 11 partner nations during Exercise Ardent Defender Sept. 18 – Oct. 22.

    Army EOD technicians from the Fort Bragg, North Carolina-based 192nd Ordnance Battalion (EOD) will participate in the counter explosive threat exercise with service members and law enforcement personnel from the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, South Korea, Australia, Colombia, Mexico and Ecuador.

    The annual exercise has been hosted since 2012 at bases across Canada, including at the Royal Canadian Air Force Base in Trenton and Fleet Diving Unit Pacific Base in Esquimalt.

    Maj. Atif Rizvi, the lead Canadian Armed Forces planner for Exercise Ardent Defender, said Canadian Forces Base Borden is the primary location for the exercise.

    “Exercise Ardent Defender provides the venue for partner nations to work collaboratively, share best practices and improve readiness against current and emerging threats,” said Rizvi. “The unique opportunity to interoperate with a wide spectrum of local law enforcement agencies and other government departments simulates the complex, real world environments expected in high stake missions.”

    Part of the Canadian Air Mobility Fleet, Rizvi is an aerospace engineering officer and explosive disposal flight commander from Mississauga in Ontario, Canada.

    “The intent of the exercise is to utilize a bottom-up approach to ensure that EOD and counter improvised explosive device training activities continue as emerging counter IED threats are observed worldwide,” said Rizvi.

    Assigned to the 192nd EOD Battalion, Soldiers from the Fort Drum, New York-based 754th EOD Company and 760th EOD Company as well as the Fort Belvoir, Virginia-based 55th EOD Company are representing the United States during the exercise.

    The battalion is part of the Fort Campbell, Kentucky-based 52nd EOD Group and the 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Command.

    The Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland-based 20th CBRNE Command is the premier all hazards formation in the U.S. Department of Defense.

    Based on 19 installations in 16 states, Soldiers and civilians from 20th CBRNE Command confront and defeat the world’s most dangerous weapons and hazards.

    Maj. Thomas N. Shanahan, the operations officers for the 192nd EOD Battalion, said the exercise will provide EOD Soldiers with the opportunity to train how they fight – in a combined, interagency and joint environment.

    “Our EOD technicians have to be prepared to deploy anywhere on short notice,” said Shanahan, a Cecil, Pennsylvania, native who has served in Iraq. “Ardent Defender gives our EOD Soldiers the opportunity to hone their skills and leverage the expertise of our joint, allied and interagency partners.”

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 09.16.2021
    Date Posted: 09.16.2021 12:17
    Story ID: 405406
    Location: BORDEN, ON, CA
    Hometown: MISSISSAUGA, ON, CA
    Hometown: CECIL, PA, US

    Web Views: 1,292
    Downloads: 0

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