Photo By Staff Sgt. Sabrina Fuller-Judd | U.S. service members and civilians from across the Department of War visit the 86th...... read more read more
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**RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany --**U.S. Airmen and civilians assigned to Ramstein Air Base, Germanyhosted the Defense Threat Reduction Agencyteamfor theinitialVienna DocumentEvaluation exercise, Aug.12-13.Thedocument’spurpose is to strengthen open and transparent communication between theU.S. and its partners.
The Vienna Document Treaty exercise tested the capabilities of organizations to communicate the mission and capabilities to agencies outside of the U.S. The exercise hosted representatives from U.S. Air Force in Europe - Air Forces Africa, the 86th Airlift Wing and the 435th Air Ground Operations Wing todemonstratedaily activities at the base, per the requirements of the Vienna Document.
“This was the firstVienna Document Evaluation exercise conducted on Ramstein, and it was also the first arms control event here in years,” said David Esch, USAFE-AFAFRICA treatycompliance officer. “The activities we did were exactly what you would expect to see in areal-worldevaluation.”
The Vienna Document is an annual requirement for the Third Air Force and USAFE-AFAFRICA anchored in data exchange, observation of military facilities and technologies and people. It is an arms control training focused on diplomatic conversation of base capabilities for thecommunityand its respective areas of responsibilities. It may be a real possibility that Ramstein on short noticemusthost foreign evaluators and thus quickly coordinate logistical support.
In preparation, Ramstein AB executed a simulated country visit to share their missioncapabilities and impact.
“This exercise allowed us to move beyond simply understanding the requirements on paper andpractice how we would execute them in a real-world environment,” said U.S. Air Force MasterSgt. Lance Cuevas, 86th AW Programs and Planning Office superintendent. “Throughcoordination and collaboration among USAFE-AFAFRICA, DTRA, the 86th AW and the 435th AGOW, we were able toestablisha common understandingof expectations, practice presenting anddemonstratingour missions, andidentifyareas where we can improve before a real-world evaluation.”
To increase realism, the exerciseincorporateda language barrierwhereevaluators solelyspoke foreign language and theirnational-level escortsserved as interpreters. Other elementsincluded attentiveness around base security, logistical challenges with hosting a foreign evaluation team on base and operational security to ensure no risk of release of sensitive information.
Both observers and evaluators provided near-real-time feedback, ensuring the employment of the Vienna Document Evaluation meets its goals.
“My biggest takeaway was the increased awareness and understanding the exercise createdacross the participating organizations,” Cuevas expressed. “We gained insight into the types ofquestions evaluators may ask, including some we had not previously considered. That feedbackand experience will help us refine our processes and be better prepared for future evaluations.”
USAFE-AFAFRICAorganized the eventin coordination with the wingstotrain service members and promote awareness for the requirements under the Vienna Document.
By visiting the 86th Civil Engineer SquadronFire andEmergencyServices Flight, 86th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, 86th CES dorm lodging, 786th Force Support Squadron Rheinland Inn Dining Facility, and the 435th Contingency Response Group’s 1st CombatCommunications Squadron,and 435th Tactical Advisory Squadron enabledthesuccessful exercise.
“We werelargely buildingthe readiness program from the ground-up,and itrequiredcareful coordination with stakeholders fromacrossthe base.I believe all the hard workpaid off,and we have done a lot to ensure readiness when the time comes to host our foreign partners,” Esch said.
Future Vienna Document exercise plans to continue to build upon the complexity by addinghost-nationand other foreign partners toinitiatefurther collaboration.
| Date Taken: | 08.13.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 09.02.2026 09:35 |
| Story ID: | 573753 |
| Location: | DE |
| Web Views: | 33 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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