Joint military exercise strengthens Balkan armies

Joint military exercise strengthens Balkan armies

Participating countries said the exercise increases regional co-operation and supports regional security.

Balkan militaries are participating in the Immediate Response 2014 military exercise headed by the US European Command (EUCOM) in Pocek, Slovenia.

The exercise commenced August 20th and will last 10 days.

Officials said the exercise's motto is "Force through Partnership" and the goal is to enhance military readiness and professional exchanges between NATO partners. It will also test the interoperability of forces in search and rescue missions.

Soldiers from Croatia -- which previously hosted the exercise -- Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Hungary and Slovenia joined in the exercise together with US, German and Dutch officers.

The Croatian Defence Ministry said the focus is to train the command structure to execute international peace operations, in particular humanitarian assistance and disaster response.

The ministry said effective communication is needed between the regional countries to include mutually agreed on and well-practiced procedures.

"[T]his exercise aims to train the headquarters of the multinational brigade to implement humanitarian operations such as remediation, construction and repair of roads, construction camps, water purification, organisation and protection of convoys of humanitarian aid and destruction of explosive devices," the ministry told SETimes in a statement.

Regional multinational exercises such as Immediate Response 2014 are important because they strengthen mutual trust and understanding among the militaries.

"[T]he participants are able to acquire new...