Twenty-two international defence attachés were shown the vital role that the Joint Warfare Centre (JWC) plays in supporting NATO’s transformation through training and exercises during a visit here on Tuesday, 3 June.
U.S. Air Force Brigadier General John W. Doucette, JWC’s Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff, welcomed a delegation of defence attachés accredited to Norway and presented an overview, focusing on JWC’s role, capabilities and key activities during their visit.
The visit provided a forum for dialogue between the JWC staff and the attachés representing the armed forces of eighteen nations including Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Estonia, Finland, France, India, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Serbia, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom and the United States.
Co-hosted by Royal Navy Rear Admiral Ketil Olsen, Norwegian Armed Forces ACOS Plans and Development Division, and Ms. Kirsti Skjerven, the Deputy Director General at Norwegian Ministry of Defence, today’s visit was part of a special familiarization programme, which also includes a site visit to Bergen Naval Base (Haakonsvern), the largest naval base in the Nordic countries.
“The attachés started with a cultural programme yesterday including hiking up to Preikestolen and staying in the Norwegian Trekking Association’s lodge (Turistforening). The Bergen programme will also include a visit to the Royal Naval Academy,” Ms. Annette Hurum, Specialist Director at the Ministry, said.
While at JWC, Norwegian Army Colonel Rolf Wold, Chief Home Guard District 08, also briefed the visitors on Home Guard’s overall mission in general and its contributions in assisting the civilian society in securing vital onshore oil and gas installations.
At the end of the briefings, Finnish Navy Commander (SG) Mika Immonen presented both Brigadier General Doucette and Colonel Wold with a coin.
The official visit also featured a guided tour of the JWC’s state-of-the-art training facility. The attachés had the opportunity to observe the ongoing ISAF Training Event 14/01 (ISAF TE14/01) and visit JWC’s two Combined Joint Operations Centres (CJOCs), where they were briefed by Norwegian Army Lieutenant Colonel Thor Randulff, the exercise OPR (Officer of Primary Responsibility), and British Army Lieutenant Colonel Richard Lapslie from JWC’s SMC4 Division, respectively.
The tour also included a visit to JWC’s fully equipped live broadcast studio where the visitors were briefed on the media simulation process that is incorporated into JWC’s exercises.
After the tour of the facilities, the visit concluded with a lunch hosted by Brigadier General Doucette.