HOHENFELS, Germany (Nov. 4, 2014) -- Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. Raymond Odierno got a first-hand view of training the Army's regionally aligned forces to Europe during a visit here, to observe exercise Combined Resolve III.
The 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and the 4th Infantry Division are participating alongside NATO allies and partners in the multinational exercise at the Army's Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels Training areas, from Oct. 1 to Nov. 24. Both units are designated as the respective brigade combat team and division headquarters aligned to support the U.S. European Command.
Odierno visited and spoke with Soldiers and commanders in the field about the benefits of training alongside multinational allies and partners in Europe and building relationships at the tactical level.
"(Rotational forces) understand the terrain, they understand the missions they might have, they understand the other nations they might have to work with," said Odierno. "For the U.S. that strengthens our alliance and it strengthens the international community, and the ability to respond when there is a crisis."
This is the second combat training center rotation at Hohenfels for the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, who are stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. They deployed to Germany last May, and spent three months training alongside NATO allies and partners, including providing the main U.S. participation in Combined Resolve II. The brigade returned to Europe in September, to assume the mission of providing forces to Operation Atlantic Resolve in Eastern Europe, as well as providing forces to train during Combined Resolve III.
This is the first major training rotation in Europe for the 4th Infantry Division headquarters staff, stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado. They are providing division-level command and control for Army forces regionally aligned with Europe.
Combined Resolve III includes participants from Albania, Armenia, Bulgaria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Moldova, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and the U.S. The exercise will include both combat maneuver training at the Hohenfels Training Area, and a "blended" live-fire exercise at the Grafenwoehr Training Area that will include a mix of live, virtual and simulated training environments.
To learn more about Combined Resolve III, go to the official exercise website www.eur.army.mil/jmtc/CombinedResolveIII.html. You can also join in the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr @7thArmyJMTC using #CombinedResolve.
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