HOHENFELS, Germany - The smell of onions rolls through the streets of Jalal Abad as men dance, sing and praise Allah for the goods that the platoon from the Afghan National Army has brought to them.
Upstairs in the main house, the mayor meets with the ANA's platoon leader, Ashabudden, to discuss intelligence with the coalition forces.
Off to the side is U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class William Wnuck, an observer-controller-trainer at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center, taking detailed observations and notes on how well Ashabudden is doing.
"The missions that we replicate here at the JMRC are missions that Soldiers will conduct in Afghanistan," Wnuck said. "We look at the things we've done well and utilize the feedback we get for improvements."
The after-action review process is what makes the Operational Mentor and Liaison Team (OMLT) training effective for NATO and the Afghan Contingency Operations, said Wnuck.
Along with NCOs from Latvia and the U.S. Army, Wnuck closely mentored the ANA platoon led by Ashabudden.
On this particular day, the ANA platoon received orders to deliver supplies, gain intelligence information and dissolve the threat of enemy forces outside of the village.
"They really cooperated with me," Ashabudden said about the U.S. and Latvian NCOs. "In every situation they help us and teach us new techniques."
Wnuck said he observed the ANA and Latvian Soldiers the same way he would an American Soldier.
"I was looking for how they utilized their value system," he said. "How well they applied their planning process to movement on the battlefield."
Training on this scale could never be conducted in his country, said Ashabudden.
"We receive some training in Afghanistan," he said, "but this training we are receiving here is more successful. And this training really makes us a more educated Army."
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