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The Saber Guardian 2019 (SG19) multinational exercise that opened on Monday in five Romanian locations and that will see the participation of 13,500 Romanian and foreign troops, was given a grand opening ceremony at the "Getica" Joint National Training Center in Cincu that involved about 2,000 troops, military hardware and fighter planes.
"It is a complex exercise that is the pinnacle of a two-year national exercise program that started with Histria 2018, continued with Joint Resolve 2019, and now with the Saber Guardian 2019 multinational exercise. The goal of the exercise is to reach national and multinational consistency, as it joins efforts on two levels - the simulation command post exercise, and live drills - maneuvering and field fire. These will be three weeks of fire on Romanian soil. There are 15 nations involved in this multinational substantial effort that will test the skills attained by each serviceman during these two years. And the strategic and tactical command of the Romanian Forces, together with the strategic partners will validate processes and command and control standards," said Major General Dorin Ionita, head of the Joint Forces Command.
The drill co-led by Romania Land Forces Command and U.S. Army Europe, and conducted in Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary will bring together in the end a total of 13,500 troops, by connecting large-scale national exercises in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Germany, UK, the Republic of Moldova, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine, the US and Italy.
The SG 19 and the joint drills planned at Romanian locations will take place at the training grounds at Cincu, Babadag, Smardan, Capu Midia, Boboc and Bordusani.
Major General Dorin Ionita praised the festive opening, adding that the military structures were also very well prepared and the ceremony went beyond the usual standards, especially thanks to the effort and initiative of the commander of the 81st Mechanized Brigade.
Major General Joe Jarrard, U.S. Army Europe Deputy Commanding General, said that the US participates in Saber Guardian 2019 with about 5,400 troops.
I would like to thank the leaders of the participating countries for their contribution to the organization and carrying out of this exercise. (...) It is an honor to be here, thank you for your hospitality. I am for the second time at Cincu, I was here two years ago on the occasion of an exercise, and we are becoming increasingly good with every exercise we complete. In fact, these exercises test the interoperability between us and the allied and partner countries. We will continue to work on these relationships and these drills will be of great help if we are in the situation to defend this region, said Major General Joe Jarrard.
The Ministry of National Defence announced that opening ceremonies for the Saber Guardian 2019 multinational exercise took place on Monday, at 10:00 at five locations where the main military activities will take place: Cincu, Bordusani, Babadag, Smardan and Rasnov.
AGERPRES
