Fuerzas Comando competition set to begin

Photo By Staff Sgt. Karen Ingham | A special operations forces competitor from Brazil adjusts his weapon sights before firing his M4 carbine, June 4, 2012, at the familiarization range at the National Training Center at Fort Tolemaida, Colombia. Fuerzas Comando, established in 2004, is a U.S. Southern Command-sponsored special forces skills competition and senior leader seminar which is conducted annually. This event is aimed at enhancing training and strengthening regional and multinational cooperation, mutual trust, readiness and interoperability of special operations forces in the region. Special Operations Command South serves as the U.S. execution agent for the exercise.  

TOLEMAIDA, COLOMBIA

06.05.2012

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Blair Heusdens 

107th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

TOLEMAIDA, Colombia -- Special operations forces from 21 countries are poised to participate in Fuerzas Comando 2012 at the Colombian National Training Center in Tolemaida, June 6-14.

Special operations and commando forces from the Bahamas, Belize, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States and Uruguay will participate in the exercise.

Opening ceremonies for the 9th annual Fuerzas Comando competition will kick off Wednesday, June 6.

Prior to the start of the competition, the countries spent four days validating the events and their equipment in preparation for the exercise. Teams had the opportunity to become familiar with each event.

The grueling eight-day competition will test the elite forces in areas such as physical fitness, weapons marksmanship, aquatic skills and tactical capabilities. The exercise concludes with a multi-national airborne operation and wing exchange ceremony, June 13, and the closing ceremony, June 14.

The senior leader seminar takes place simultaneously during the competition. This year, senior military and government officials from each country will gather in Bogota, June 11-14, to discuss countering transnational organized crime. The seminar is designed to improve military-to-military relations and provides a collaborative environment for regional military leaders.

Both the exercise and the seminar are aimed at enhancing training and strengthening regional and multinational cooperation, mutual trust, readiness and interoperability of special operations forces in the Western Hemisphere.

Colombia is the host of this year’s competition and seminar, which is sponsored by the United States Southern Command. Special Operations Command South, headquartered at Homestead Air Reserve Base, Fla., is the lead U.S. executing command for the exercise. SOCSOUTH serves as the special operations component for U.S. Southern Command.

For more information and imagery of the competition, please visit:
SOCSOUTH facebook page at: www.facebook.com/USSOCSOUTH
Fuerzas Comando website at: www.fuerzascomando.com

• Date Taken: 06.05.2012
• Date Posted: 06.05.2012 13:42
• Story ID: 89454
• Location: TOLEMAIDA, CO