BALTIC SEA REGION -- U.S. Marines joined more than 500 multinational troops from 11 countries recently to participate in Exercise Baltic Sea Operations 2005. This annual exercise is aimed at improving interoperability between participating nation’s militaries and to strengthen their relationships.
The exercise took place 5 to15 June and has been held in the Baltic Region of Northern Europe for the past 33 years. This year reserve Marines from Company G and Headquarters and Service Company, 2nd Battalion 23rd Marines from Los Alamitos, Calif., began the land portion of the exercise in the former Soviet state of Bornholm, Denmark.
They trained alongside Marines and Naval Infantry troops from Germany, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Denmark, and Sweden. Most of the countries involved were brought together by the United Nations as Partnership for Peace nations after the Cold War to ease tensions between the NATO alliance and former Soviet states.
This year, some of these former sworn enemies trained together in maritime and land exercises that afford them the opportunity to interact and train in an atmosphere of good will.
"Our primary mission on this exercise was to make friends with the other nations because it makes the world a safer place if they don't fight each other,” said Swedish Forces platoon commander, 1st Lt. Niklas Jamssom.
During this exercise they didn't fight each other; they began participating in joint land navigation and live-fire exercises against an invisible enemy, each member learning something from the training.
There are many differences in the way they shoot their weapons and conduct certain squad fires and rushes, said Lance Cpl. Victor Murillo, a machine gunner with Company G, 2nd Battalion 23rd Marines and Calif. native. “I have learned so much."
The multi-national forces spent their first week in Denmark, with each nation giving demonstrations of their countries unique weapons and war fighting tactics before heading to the field together.
"We're all here to share our techniques, tactics and procedures, and promote the Partnership for Peace Program and to make sure that our communication and our command and control nodes are interoperable with each other," said Maj. Matt Grosz, commanding officer, Company G, 2nd Battalion 23rd Marines.
Living together in the field also gave the troops a chance to socialize with the other nations and share personal accounts of their service.
"I try to talk a lot with the guys especially those with combat experience who have gone to Iraq," says Jamssom. "I ask about what to expect."
After returning from the fields of Bornholm, they embarked on the USS Tortuga, Dock Landing Ship 46, heading across the Baltic Sea to the Polish Navy's Ustka training range. After the 24-hour trip, the Russian ship Kaliningrad joined Tortuga. That morning, the multi-national force, now joined by Russian Marines, stormed the beaches of Poland for the scenario portion of the exercise.
The scenario centered on a Noncombatant Evacuation Operation or NEO.
From the beach the troops move inward toward the fictional “Blueland” embassy, which needs to be evacuated because of a rise in hostilities. U.S. Marines from H&S Company and sailors from USS Tortuga played the embassy diplomats as well as local insurgents fighting against the multinational forces.
“I think it’s a great scenario," said Petty Officer 3rd Class Michael Zieglar, who played an Embassy dependant. "I think it’s going to work well for everyone involved because they have gone really in depth with these characters. There are so many types of people and you have try and find the difference between who’s hostile and who’s not.”
Sergeant Nicholas Justiniano, from Company G, 2nd Battalion 23rd Marines, agrees the realistic tone for the exercise will help the forces.
"Most of the guys (in the exercise) have already been to Iraq, so they know what it's like to not know who's around and anybody can be an enemy," Jusiniano said.
The entire scenario lasted early into the next morning, every country worked together to fight the insurgent breakouts, guarding the hostile prisoners, holding the perimeters and calming the many protests and riots that broke out.
"BALTOPS is good for these nations,” says a Russian Colonel through a translator. “Because they can work together and find common ways to fight terrorism."
After the close of the exercise the Kaliningrad headed back to Russia and the USS Tortuga returned to Denmark for the closing ceremonies. After the two weeks of training, the friendship between the former enemies helped demonstrate that PFP continues to be an essential mission.
“Every one of them are good soldiers,” says 1st Sgt. Robert Monticup, H&S Company, 2nd Battalion 23rd Marines, first sergeant. “They all want to do a good job, and they are.”