The Command and General Staff College inducted three international graduates who have led their country's army or defense forces into its International Hall of Fame on Oct. 6 at the Lewis and Clark Center. The induction brings to 266 the number of leaders who have been honored in the Hall of Fame from the nearly 8,000 international officers who have graduated from the college.
Major General John S. Kem, Provost of the Army University and Deputy Commandant of the Command and General Staff College officiated the ceremony. He noted the success of international officers at the college. More than half of the college's international graduates achieve general officer rank. He then declared the members of the Hall of Fame the "elite of the elite" for achieving senior positions of leadership within their country's military or international military organizations.
Kem then introduced the three honorees, General Volker Wieker of Germany, Brigadier General Igor Gorgan of Moldova, and Brigadier General Mark Anthony Phillips of Guyana.
General Wieker started his career in the German Army in 1974. He completed a number of armored artillery assignments commanding at the battery and battalion levels. He also commanded a German Armored Brigade and the Multinational Brigade South in Kosovo. As a general, he commanded the 1st German/Netherlands Corps. General Wieker participated in international operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Iraq. Today, General Wieker serves as the 15th Chief of Staff of the Bundeswehr, the German military. He graduated from the U.S. Army Command General Staff Officer's Course in 1992 and is the eighth German officer to be inducted. General Wieker was not able to attend the ceremony. The German Army Liaison Officer to the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center, Colonel Carsten Treder accepted the honor on behalf of the general.
Speaking on behalf of Wieker, Treder relayed the general's gratefulness and deep honor at being recognized by the Hall of Fame. He also noted that in 1991, when Wieker arrived at Fort Leavenworth, the idea of a Bundeswehr combat mission or deployment in support of an international task force was nearly unthinkable. However, he said, the events of that time--German Reunification, Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and the fall of the Soviet Union--were the beginning of a changing security environment that includes wide challenges and risks that are more diverse and increasingly unpredictable. He concluded his remarks saying strong trans-Atlantic partnerships are paramount in today's world.
Brigadier General Gorgan was selected as the Chief of the General Staff of the National Army of Moldova and Commander of the National Army in 2013 and continued in that role until his retirement in June of this year. He previously commanded a Motorized Battalion, commanded the 1st and 2nd Motorized Infantry Brigades, and served as Chief of the J-7 Training Directorate of the National Army General Staff. The 2002 graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff Officer's Course has also served overseas deployments in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, and Iraq. Brigadier General Gorgan is the third Moldovan officer to be inducted.
Gorgan began his acceptance by thanking his CGSC instructors and classmates for helping him through the year at CGSC. He also thanked CGSC sponsors for helping him to learn about America. He said the life-long relationships with U.S. and fellow international officers are the most important takeaway from CGSC. "That was never more important than it is now," he said, noting that much remains to be accomplished in today's security environment. He said CGSC helped him to develop three principles that he lives by -- professionalism, sense of duty, and loyalty.
Brigadier General Phillips has commanded at every level. He was the Inspector General for Guyana beginning in 2011. Earlier, he was Guyana's Delegate to Inter-American Defense Board in 2009 and Guyana's non-resident military attaché to Venezuela in 2010. Brigadier General Phillips was appointed as the Chief of the Staff of the Guyana Defense Force in September 2013 and has served in that position until his retirement this month. Brigadier General Phillips is the third U.S. Army Command and General Staff Officers Course graduate from Guyana to attain the rank of general and the second to be inducted into the hall of fame.
Phillips said CGSC rekindled in him an interest in the study of war and international relationships. He also said his year at CGSC strengthened his understanding of operational leadership, taught him to remember the "be, know, and do" of leadership, and improved his understanding of how the U.S. operated with international partners. He said the Guyana Defense Forces are better today because of CGSC. He noted the officer who replaced him as Chief of Staff was a CGSC graduate and the two officers next in line for that position also attended CGSC.
The CGSC International Hall of Fame was established in 1973 jointly between CGSC, the Greater Kansas City Chapter of the Military Order of the World Wars and the CGSC Foundation, In addition to being inducted into the Hall of Fame, inductees are presented a CGSC certificate of honor by the Military Order of the World Wars and a Life Constituent Certificate by the Foundation.
International military student participation in cooperative military studies in the United States originated at Fort Leavenworth with the arrival of Swiss Lieutenant Henri Le Comte in 1894. Since then, international students, representing 164 countries to date, have become an integral part of the Fort Leavenworth experience. These talented military officers contribute to a rich professional and cultural exchange environment.
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