Photo By Sgt. Miguel Ruiz | Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment, Oregon Army National Guard,...... read more read more
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CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo - U.S. Army Col. Eric Riley took command of Kosovo Force Regional-Command East at a change of command ceremony March 17, 2020, at Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo.
Riley is a member of the Oregon Army National Guard’s 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team and will command RC-E’s maneuver battalion, effects battalion and a series of support task forces charged with ensuring the safety, security, and freedom of movement for all the people of Kosovo.
“I’m honored to support the people and institutions of Kosovo in maintaining peaceful and stable communities,” said Riley. “I am eager to forge new relationships and grow existing relationships as we move forward with our mission. KFOR RC-E is committed to empowering our Kosovo partner organizations as they continue their progress towards a peaceful and stable Kosovo.”
Riley will utilize the contributions of several RC-E components who are all committed to the success of the KFOR mission.
One of RC-E’s largest components is the maneuver battalion. It is comprised of troops from the Oregon Army National Guard’s 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment, Turkey and Poland, and is commanded by Lt. Col. Kyle Akers.
The maneuver battalion is responsible for patrolling Kosovo’s administrative boundary lines, municipalities, and provides support to local authorities to maintain security in Kosovo, said Akers.
“Having multiple nations cooperate and contribute their experiences ensures the maneuver battalion is competent, professional and capable of achieving our mission along Kosovo’s administrative boundary line and within RC-E’s area of responsibility,” said Akers. “This cooperation helps to continue multinational interoperability within NATO and KFOR.”
Another large component of RC-E is the effects battalion.
The effects battalion commander, Slovenian Armed Forces Lt. Col. Aleksander Vidergar, said the effects battalion’s mission highlights collaboration between RC-E liaison monitoring teams and Kosovo’s communities, officials and organizations.
“Our mission is to observe and annotate the status of the Kosovo people’s safety and security,” said 1st. Lt. Parker Mooney, an LMT team leader. “Our observations and the information that we collect helps determine KFOR initiatives for providing a safe and secure environment and maintaining relations with the people of Kosovo.”
KFOR RC-E consists of 16 LMT teams who communicate daily with various Kosovo communities and is comprised of troops from Switzerland, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Slovenia, Turkey and the U.S.
“Our LMTs monitor key Kosovo personnel, institutions and important events,” said Vidergar. “Ultimately LMTs represent the daily dialogue between the Kosovo community and RC-E.”
Other well-established task forces within RC-E enable and support the maneuver and effects battalions and ultimately help accomplish the KFOR mission of providing safety, security and freedom of movement for the people of Kosovo.
“This is a mature theater of operations and we are well equipped to accomplish our mission,” said ORARNG 41st IBCT’s Col. Noel Hoback, deputy commander of RC-E. “We’ve been here [in Kosovo] for 20 years and our support units and task forces are competent, well trained, and ready to accomplish their respective missions.”
Task force explosive ordnance disposal personnel directly assist local Kosovo organizations such as the Kosovo Police and Kosovo Security Forces in the removal of unexploded ordnance found within Kosovo.
TF EOD utilizes three U.S. teams from the 720th Ordnance Disposal Company who are capable of safely removing old-explosive remnants of war and providing support to Kosovo Police, the KSF, and other local organizations in the removal of explosive ordnance, said 1st. Lt. Michael Villahermosa, TF EOD commander.
“Anytime we are able to remove explosives from Kosovo is a great feeling because it means the people of Kosovo can go about their daily lives as usual,” said Villahermosa. “We are excited to be here and look forward to supporting the people of Kosovo and local organizations.”
KFOR RC-E also utilizes personnel to communicate RC-E operations and initiatives through the dissemination of public information.
“Not only do we owe it to the American public to tell our story, but it is especially important to provide timely and accurate information during a peace-keeping mission like KFOR,” said Capt. Nadine DeMoura, commander of KFOR RC-E’s task force public affairs detachment. “We are the subject matter experts in providing command information internally, public information externally and building community relationships.”
TF PAD, who is organic to the 100th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment Texas Army National Guard, primarily produces but is not limited to video stories, print stories and photo stories, that capture and highlight the values of the KFOR RC-E mission and distribute those products to the American public, our NATO partners and the people of Kosovo, said DeMoura.
KFOR RC-E personnel like EOD and PAD Soldiers are based in Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo, where they have access to outpatient medical care staffed by RC-E’s task force medical, a Role 1 military medical facility responsible for the health and protection of all RC-E personnel.
TF MED is made up of 38 Soldiers from various U.S. Army active and non-active units, said Capt. Adam Eichhorn, the executive officer of TF MED.
“We have capabilities in emergency care, primary care, behavioral health, dentistry, physical therapy, radiology, labs, pharmacy, preventative medicine and even have a veterinary team” said Eichhorn. “We are primarily responsible for the health and protection of our RC-E troops and also collaborate with Kosovo humanitarian programs and schools to share our knowledge with the people of Kosovo.”
Also a part of TF MED are the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter medical-evacuation personnel who are organic to the Tennessee Army National Guard and are a part of KFOR RC-E’s task force aviation.
TF Aviation is also made up of other Blackhawk pilots and support personnel from the Colorado Army National Guard and the Maryland Army National Guard, said Lt. Col. Ken Walsh, commander of TF Aviation.
“We are ready and capable to provide support in any way we can,” said Walsh. “Whether that is by providing air transport to our KFOR troops, conducting medical evacuation missions, training with our KFOR and NATO partners and more.”
“We are highly motivated, highly capable and proud of our mission,” said Walsh.
Another source of support and protection of RC-E personnel is task force military police.
TF MP is comprised of a provost marshal from the ORARNG 41st IBCT, a team from the 100th Military Working Dog Police Detachment in Kaiserlautern,Germany, and the 423rd Military Police Company from the New York Army Reserve, said 1st. Lt. Kasiym Bethea, TF MP commander.
“Our Soldiers are civilian police officers, fire fighters, and emergency medical technicians, among other varying backgrounds, in New York, Maryland and surrounding areas,” said Bethea. “We have many military policing capabilities and are well trained and equipped to provide force protection to all RC-E personnel.
KFOR RC-E is operating as the 27th iteration of support units and task forces supporting Kosovo since NATO’s establishment of KFOR in 1999, now commanded by Col. RIley.
“KFOR 27 will continue to strengthen the legacy of strong partnerships with our NATO partners and the people and institutions of Kosovo,” said Riley. “Supporting the people and institutions of Kosovo in maintaining peaceful and stable communities is a touchstone of our mission.”
| Date Taken: | 03.25.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 03.28.2020 07:39 |
| Story ID: | 366096 |
| Location: | CAMP BONDSTEEL, ZZ |
| Web Views: | 754 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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