U.S. honors Spanish officers in NATO unit

By Troy DarrNovember 23, 2022

U.S. honors Spanish officers in NATO unit
1 / 3 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Spanish Army Col. Juan Salvat receives an Army Achievement Medal from Col. Jerzy Zubr, U.S. senior national representative at the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps – Spain, during an awards ceremony Nov. 2 in Valencia, Spain. (Photo Credit: Courtesy) VIEW ORIGINAL
U.S. honors Spanish officers in NATO unit
2 / 3 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Spanish Army Lt. Col. Jorge Rodriguez de Guzman salutes Col. Jerzy Zubr, U.S. senior national representative at the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps – Spain, during an awards ceremony Nov. 2 in Valencia, Spain. Rodriguez de Guzman and Spanish Army Lt. Col. Manuel Tenorio (right) received Army Commendation Medals from Zubr for their support to U.S. Soldiers. (Photo Credit: Courtesy) VIEW ORIGINAL
U.S. honors Spanish officers in NATO unit
3 / 3 Show Caption + Hide Caption – U.S. and Spanish soldiers assigned to NATO Rapid Deployable Corps – Spain pause for a group photo after an awards ceremony held in Valencia, Spain Nov. 2. The Soldiers are from left to right: Sgt. 1st Class Joyce Ho, Sgt. 1st Class Larry Stample, Maj. Robert Payne, Maj. Francisco Bonilla, Lt. Col. Jorge Rodriguez de Guzman, Lt. Col. Manuel Tenorio, Col. Juan Salvat, Col. Jerzy Zubr, Sgt. 1st Class Aaron Welch, Lt. Col. Ramon Ruiz, Maj. Kerman Rodriguez, Maj. Ken Dougher and Lt. Col. Sang Han. (Photo Credit: Courtesy) VIEW ORIGINAL

VALENCIA, Spain -- The U.S. senior national representative at the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps - Spain awarded medals to three field grade officers during a ceremony Nov. 2.

U.S. Army Col. Jerzy Zubr awarded two Army Commendation Medals and one Army Achievement Medal to the Spanish officers for their support to U.S. Soldiers in Spain.

In addition to serving as the SNR at NRDC-Spain, Zubr is the corps’ operations chief.

“It is a privilege and an honor to present a U.S. award to an ally,” said Zubr. “The awards recognize an important achievement, but more importantly, they underscore the U.S. Army's gratitude to our Spanish allies for their efforts to prevent conflict and preserve peace for nearly one billion people within the NATO alliance.”

Spanish Army Lt. Col. Manuel Tenorio received an Army Commendation Medal for his service in the corps’ G3 Section.

“Lt. Col. Tenorio's award covered 10 years of friendship and loyalty to four U.S. Army Colonels,” said Zubr. “His positive attitude and diplomatic spirit were an important and visible component of the G3 Operations Branch camaraderie and partnership building.”

Spanish Army Lt. Col. Jorge Rodriguez de Guzman, G3 Spanish Army Parachute Brigade liaison, received an Army Commendation Medal for hosting dozens of U.S. Reserve Officer Training Command cadets training with Spanish paratroopers in the summer of 2013 and 2014 as part of the Cultural Understanding and Leadership Program.

Spanish Army Col. Juan Salvat received an Army Achievement Medal for organizing the training of over 20 U.S. Army ROTC cadets with the Spanish Army 4th Legion Regiment in Ronda during the summer of 2014.

“Two of the awards presented on Nov. 2 bring the added circumstance that it took us eight years to finally pin them on Col. Salvat and Lt. Col. Rodriguez's chests,” said Zubr. “However long it took, I believe it made the awards more meaningful because they were unequivocal statements that the U.S. Army does not forget our friends' assistance.

“No nation can confront today’s challenges alone, and as the European security environment continues to shift, the U.S. relies more and more on our relationships with allies for regional leadership, interoperability, and collaboration,” said Zubr. “The U.S. will continue to work closely with Spain to achieve our mutual objectives and address our shared foreign policy challenges, especially as we strive to permanently mitigate the risk to security posed by terror organizations and other threats.”

The NATO Rapid Deployable Corps - Spain is one of nine land forces headquarters that make up the NATO Force Structure. About four hundred military personnel from the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and Spain serve in the unit.

U.S. Army NATO Brigade provides support to Soldiers and their families to provide ready and resilient Soldiers to the NATO alliance, maintain our joint and multinational partnerships and enhance the alliance. The brigade is the U.S. Army support element for units at 81 locations in 22 countries.

For more information go to U.S. Army NATO Brigade.