JMTC trains NATO, ISAF partners in Counter Insurgency

By Capt. Robert Burnham, 114th Public Affairs Detachment, New Hampshire National GuardJune 8, 2011

JMTC trains NATO and ISAF partners in Counter Insurgency
1 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – HOHENFELS, Germany – French, U.S., and Latvia Army Soldiers follow along during a Counter Insurgency (COIN) class held at the Joint Multinational Training Command’s (JMTC) Hohenfels Training Area (HTA). The class, which was run by instructors who are... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
JMTC trains NATO and ISAF partners in Counter Insurgency
2 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – HOHENFELS, Germany – German Army Col. Hermann Meyer, the deputy brigade commander for the 37th Mechanized Infantry, makes a comment during a Counter Insurgency (COIN) class held at the Joint Multinational Training Command’s (JMTC) Hohenfels Training ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
JMTC trains NATO and ISAF partners in Counter Insurgency
3 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – HOHENFELS, Germany – German Army Master Sgt. Konrad Seiseuberger, a medical non-commissioned officer, follows along during a Counter Insurgency (COIN) class held at the Joint Multinational Training Command’s (JMTC) Hohenfels Training Area (HTA). The ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
JMTC trains NATO and ISAF partners in Counter Insurgency
4 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – HOHENFELS, Germany – U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Michael Murray II, a Counter Insurgency (COIN) instructor with the COIN Training Center for the International Security Assistance Force in near Kabul, Afghanistan looks at a map of Afghanistan during a mult... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
JMTC trains NATO and ISAF partners in Counter Insurgency
5 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – HOHENFELS, Germany – German Army Soldiers follow along during a Counter Insurgency (COIN) class held at the Joint Multinational Training Command’s (JMTC) Hohenfels Training Area (HTA). The class, which was run by instructors who are currently deploye... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

HOHENFELS, Germany " With more than 40 nations partnered in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, it is critical that each allied national military be versed in executing unified tactics to defeat the insurgent networks in Afghanistan. These networks terrorize the people and marginalize security, stability and government within the country.

To foster unity of effort among ISAF partners, the Joint Multinational Training Command (JMTC), headquartered in Grafenwöhr, Germany, recently hosted a nine-day Counter Insurgency (COIN) training course, to increase the self-sufficiency of ISAF national militaries, in understanding and overcoming terrorist networks.

“We’ve come here to train the trainers with multinational forces to develop some inherent capabilities among NATO nations,” said course instructor, U.S. Marine Corps. Capt. Erik Wilkerson, currently assigned to the Counter Insurgency Training Center Afghanistan, “to train their own units on some of the counter insurgency principles that we teach in Afghanistan.”

Wilkerson, and the course’s remaining instructors, came directly from their assignments in Afghanistan to teach the nine-day course, bringing with them, the most relevant and up to date information and trends on COIN operations in Afghanistan.

According to published U.S. Army doctrine, COIN operations involve the fracturing of possible links between the insurgency and the civilian population. To mitigate insurgent influence, COIN procedures use military, governmental and non-governmental responses, which work to restore security and the ability of local and national governance to provide for the needs of the populous.

“For me it’s been eye-opening on a professional level, to see the contributions of the NATO nations and it’s been very encouraging. Instability spreads, and we have a vested interest in preventing the spread of instability across Afghanistan and across the world,” Wilkerson said.

The geographical location of Hohenfels Training Area, made the JMTC the most suitable host for this international military conference, attended by numerous European military leaders. Currently, more than 80 percent of ISAF partners are European nations.

The participants in the course included more than 100 multinationals, who were officers and senior non-commissioned officers from NATO and ISAF nations. Many of the participants had partnered during COIN operations in unstable regions such as Afghanistan, Iraq, and the Balkans.

German Army Col. Hermann Meyer, deputy commander of the German Army’s 37th Mechanized Infantry Brigade said the training allowed for information and personal experiences to be shared which brought value and authenticity to the course.

“My brigade will conduct a one year rotation in Afghanistan starting in November,” Meyer said. “The training here, the content of this course has given me an extensive and accurate overview of the origins or promotable conditions for insurgency.”

Meyer intends to share the knowledge he gained from the course to better prepare his Soldiers and to empower Afghan National Army senior leaders he will soon advise.

He said it is rare to see a command that can bring multinational partners together with the most current information and personal experiences from participants on the battlefields.

In addition to the study of functional Afghan governance and rule of law to defeat terrorist networks, the course focused on the importance of understanding the cultural beliefs and practices of the Afghan people.

While leading a block of instruction on the pillars of stable societies, Wilkinson said, “It all begins with security, without security nothing else can happen. You can’t develop political systems, you can’t develop agriculture, and you can’t institute projects for reform to prevent the bad actors from coming in.”

“Military service is a great thing,” Wilkinson added. “Some think it’s all just about locating, closing with, and destroying the enemy; but there is a lot more to it. It’s about helping people across the full spectrum of operations, building trust and viable institutions that will last long after you’re gone, which will provide peace and stability that people really need to live their lives.”

Related Links:

7th Army Joint Multinational Training Command