US, Georgian forces begin two-week exercise Noble Partner

Photo By Sgt. Daniel Cole | Troop C, 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment 173rd Abn. Bde., stand in formation, May 11, after completing a airborne jump during the opening ceremony for Exercise Noble Partner 15. Noble Partner is a field training and live-fire exercise between the U.S. Army and the Georgian military to support Georgia's participation in the NATO Response Force and build military ties between the two nations. (U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Daniel Cole, Army Europe Public Affairs)  

VAZIANI, GEORGIA

05.11.2015

Courtesy Story

U.S. Army Europe and Africa     

By Sgt. Daniel Cole
U.S. Army Europe

VAZIANI, Georgia – Exercise Noble Partner 15 kicked off today here, May 11, beginning the 14-day training featuring paratroopers from Troop C, 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment 173rd Airborne Brigade; Soldiers from Company A, 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division; and Georgian soldiers assigned to Company A, 12th Battalion, 1st Infantry Brigade, Georgian Land Forces.

“The name of today’s exercise is not a coincidence,” said U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Mark Loeben, the U.S. European Command’s director of exercises and assessments. “The name ‘Noble Partner’ was deliberately chosen. It is a name that the Georgian armed forces have earned. It is a name that they demonstrate through every contribution, every commitment and every sacrifice. They have demonstrated time and again a level of commitment that is worthy of the exercise that we have named on their behalf, here today.”

Noble Partner includes approximately 600 U.S. and Georgian service members who will be incorporating a full range of equipment, including the U.S. Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle and several wheeled support vehicles. Georgian forces will operate alongside U.S. forces with their BMP-2 Infantry Combat Vehicles.

One of the Georgian companies participating in Noble Partner is part of the NATO Response Force, a highly ready and technologically advanced multinational force made up of land, air, maritime and special operations components. This partnership enables the contributing members of the alliance to deploy quickly, wherever needed. 

The ceremony proceeded in traditional military fashion with speeches from high-ranking military and government officials, national anthems of both countries and a static display of U.S. and Georgian combat vehicles behind the formation.

“Noble Partner is another step taken in the direction of strengthening our collaboration,” said Tina Khidasheli, the Georgian defense minister. “The ongoing training will enable Georgia to strengthen its defense capabilities. It also will be an enabler for Georgia to get very quickly involved in NATO Reaction Force activates.”

Paratroopers from the 173rd Abn. Bde.’s ‘Sky Soldiers’ parachuted into the ceremony from a U.S. Air Force C-130 J aircraft onto the runway where less than 300 meters away, guests watched closely.

“As my friend [Georgian] Maj. Gen. [Vakhtang] Kapanadze says, ‘partnership is temporary’, but after so many years or cooperation and working together, today’s Georgian and U.S. military is more like a brotherhood that just a partnership,” concluded Loeben.
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About Us: U.S. Army Europe is uniquely positioned in its 51-country area of responsibility to advance American strategic interests in Europe and Eurasia. The relationships built during the more that 1,000 theater security cooperation events, held in more than 40 countries each year, lead directly to support for multinational contingency operations around the world, strengthen regional partnerships and enhance global security.

• Date Taken: 05.11.2015
• Date Posted: 05.11.2015 13:04
• Story ID: 162890
• Location: VAZIANI, GE