Polish, US Engineers Break Ground at Resolute Castle 2018

22nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
Story by Spc. Andrew McNeil

Date: 05.08.2018
Posted: 05.08.2018 10:51
News ID: 276135
Polish, US Engineers kickoff Resolute Castle 2018

KONOTOP, Poland — Leaders from the Polish and American armies commemorated the start of an annual training exercise in northeastern Poland this week.

Polish Col. Marek Gmurski, the 5th Engineer Regiment commander, and U.S. Army Maj. Jason Rolling, the executive officer for the Michigan Army National Guard’s 107th Engineer Battalion, shook hands after breaking ground during the Resolute Castle 2018 opening ceremony at Drawsko Pomorskie Training Area, Poland.

Resolute Castle is a multinational joint training exercise for NATO and U.S. Army engineers that supports Atlantic Resolve, a demonstration of the United States’ commitment to the collective security of Europe through the deployment of rotational U.S. forces in cooperation with NATO ally and partner nations.

“Here Soldiers will get to put blade to earth,” said Rolling. “They get to put concrete down, and it’s a permanent thing, and it’s theirs; they get to put their stamp on it.”

The exercise allows Polish and U.S. Soldiers to work alongside each other as well as other NATO engineers. These Soldiers will work together for the next six months building training capabilities in various areas of NATO’s eastern-member states.

Rolling said the training he and others will participate in during the coming weeks will focus on engineering-specific tasks that include projects designed to have a long-term benefit for those who will use the area later for other training.

“There are a lot of construction missions that will help make the base better to train on, like making better targeting systems and helping build facilities for soldiers to train and live,” said Rolling.

He added that Resolute Castle enables the U.S. and its allies to enhance interoperability through a diverse range of training and the implementation of innovative solutions to common engineering problems.

“We need to understand the host nation and their culture,” said Rolling. “We will learn how to do it their way because this is their home.”

By working side-by-side with our U.S. and NATO allies and partners, Polish engineers will share techniques, while learning new engineering methods, which will help strengthen the relationships of everyone involved, said Gmurski, the Polish army colonel.

The Resolute Castle exercise is currently in its fourth iteration. This year’s participants are from Poland, the U.K. and the U.S.