YAVORIV, Ukraine-Hon. Debra S. Wada, Assistant Secretary of the Army visited the Soldiers of the Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine, Sept 13, at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center here.
Wada is responsible for the supervision of the manpower, personnel and Reserve component affairs for the Department of the Army. She serves as the Army's point person for policy and performance oversight of human resources, training, readiness, mobilization, military health affairs and equal opportunity.
This is the first time Wada has been to Ukraine and was able to see how the American Soldiers were contributing to the success of the country.
"I wanted to get a better sense of what is going on at the IPSC and to get a better understanding of what we (American Forces) are providing in Ukraine," said Wada. "It is clear that a lot of great personalities have come together to make this very successful."
The short trip began with Wada touring the Post Exchange and observing all of the facilities that have been put in place to make the lives of the Soldiers more enjoyable.
After the quick tour of the PX, Wada headed to lunch with the Soldiers of the JMTG-U and was able to speak to them about their experiences over the last few months working with their multinational partners.
"Part of the main reason that I came out here was to sit down with Soldiers and get their perspective of the IPSC, hear the challenges that they are going through, and listen to some of the lessons they have learned," Wada said.
Toward the end of the trip, she was able meet with representatives from Poland, Lithuania and Canada to get their perspective of the ongoing training.
Wada stated that she wished she had more time to see some of the training that has been going on and how the allied forces and American forces have come together to train.
"I think the work that we're doing here is important, and the experience the Soldiers are gaining is beneficial," she said.
The visit to JMTG-U was part of a larger tour of U.S. Army Europe's area of responsibility to include Germany and Kosovo.
JMTG-U's primary goal is to directly train Ukrainian soldiers in the near term while building helping Ukrainian Land Forces build a sustainable and enduring combat training center.
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