10 NATO Allies come together to plan major crisis response exercise

By 7th Army JMTC Public AffairsFebruary 12, 2015

Swift Response Main Planning Conference
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

HOHENFELS, Germany -- Military planners from 10 NATO nations came together this week in Hohenfels, Germany to plan for exercise Swift Response.

The exercise will take place at multiple locations across the U.S. Army Europe area of operations and is intended to exercise high-readiness forces from a coalition of NATO nations, including France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain and the United States. The goal is to test the ability of the coalition forces to respond quickly and effectively to potential crisis situations on the European continent.

Swift Response will feature airborne forces from each nation, including the U.S. Army's 1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division out of Fort Bragg and the Europe-based 173rd Airborne Brigade.

"This is a chance for us to do something that is new for our forces," said Brigadier (UK) Giles Hill, Deputy Commanding General-Interoperability for the 82nd Airborne Division. "Swift Response will contribute to NATO's capability to rapidly respond to crisis situations."

Swift Response is scheduled to take place in Germany, Italy and Bulgaria from Aug. 18 to Sept. 15, 2015.