KARAHBET TRAINING AREA, Azerbaijan -- Every three months, a small team of staff and non-commissioned officers from Marine Forces Europe (MFE) travel to the Republic of Azerbaijan, a former Soviet Republic, to participate in a professional military exchange of leadership skills and training.
The MFE mobile training teams (MTTs) have been working with the Azerbaijani Army’s NCO Academy for more than a year and a half as partners in a program designed to build and strengthen the Azerbaijani NCO corps.
The MTTs, small teams of three to five Marines, travel to Azerbaijan once a quarter and lead a series of classes and guided discussions on topics in leadership ranging from counseling techniques and troop leading steps, to leadership principles, traits and development.
Maj. Jeff Carpenter, Marine Forces Europe Caucasus regional planner and MTT coordinator said the purpose of the MTT mission in Azerbaijan is to assist the Azerbaijan Armed Forces in the continued professionalization of their military, specifically by providing training and instruction on the roles and responsibilities of Non-Commissioned Officers, leadership principles and practices, and NCO-Officer relationships.”
“Azerbaijan, like many of the former Soviet republics, is still learning how to empower its NCOs and service members and though they are making great strides the process is lengthy,” Carpenter, a Brentwood, Calif., native, said. “The Marine Corps, with its focus on decentralized decision-making, its warrior ethos, and its superb non-commissioned officer corps is a fantastic example for the Azerbaijan soldiers and leadership.”
According to Carpenter, the original idea of Marines becoming involved in the NCO Academy came in late 2006, when the Azerbaijan military requested assistance from U.S. European Command (EUCOM) with developing their NCOs.
Working with EUCOM, the Office of Defense Cooperation (ODC) in Baku, Azerbaijan contacted Marine Forces Europe for assistance.
In July of 2007, two of MFE’s section chiefs, Master Gunnery Sgts. Henry Franklin and Jonathan White, conducted a preliminary survey and began work with ODC Baku with input and feedback from the Azerbaijan Training and Education Command to establish the current program.
Since then, MFE and senior staff-noncommissioned officers and NCOs have participated in the week-long events each quarter. Marine Forces Africa Marines have also supported the Azerbaijan NCO development mission.
Carpenter said in the year and half that the MTT has been working with the Azerbaijan, approximately 800 soldiers have gone through the training.
Sgt. Shawn Galindo, MFA administrative operations NCO and Odessa, Texas native, served as an instructor on the most recent MTT visit to Azerbaijan.
Galindo said the experience was a positive one that not only served to benefit the Azerbaijani soldiers, but also gave him a new way to think about himself as a leader of Marines.
“Not only was I able to share the Marine Corps perspective on leadership information with the Azerbaijan soldiers, but [the experience] made me a better NCO,” Galindo said. “We all know there are different leadership traits, principles and styles, but usually they aren’t on the forefront of your mind. I found myself doing some thinking during my downtime about my strengths and weaknesses, and I think since I've been back from this trip, I been able to focus on improving myself as a leader.”
The format of the program includes a week of interpreter-assisted classroom instruction and guided discussion in the mornings and early afternoon followed by a physical training session that familiarizes the NCOs with running unit PT.
Galindo said the topics taught in the classroom covered the Marine Corps’ approach to leadership training and the roles and responsibilities of a Marine NCO, as well as numerous question and answer periods that allowed both forces to increase their familiarity with each other’s standard operating procedures.
In addition to providing a learning experience for both forces, Gunnery Sgt. Ivan Quan, MFE administrative operations chief and Norwalk, Calif., native, said having NCOs lead the instruction is a vital component to the program.
According to Quan, the Azerbaijanis are working to incorporate a more Western style of military leadership, where NCOs are empowered with more authority to lead.
“We want [the Azerbaijanis] to see that it does not require an officer or SNCO to run every event,” Quan, the program’s lead instructor, said. “Marine Corps leadership has created NCOs who are more than capable to lead their peers and subordinates. We want the Azerbaijani NCOs to see that SNCOs and officers are not there to run the event, but are there to provide guidance.”
Although the Marines stand in front of the classroom to lead the periods of instruction, Quan was quick to note that the intent of the program was to share information and experiences in order to improve both forces involved.
“We are not there to simply impress the Azerbaijanis with any made up techniques or insist they do exactly what we say,” Quan said. “We are there to share. To explain how our NCO have been so successful in both battle and garrison. This basic leadership course is a starting point that the Azerbaijani military can improve on.”
Carpenter said the Marines also benefit greatly from the MTT mission. Referencing, the Azerbaijani Peacekeeping Battalion that served along side Marines in Haditha, Iraq for several years of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Carpenter said the program allows Marines to gain a better understanding of an important coalition partner.
“One of the most tangible benefits to the Marine Corps from this training is the increased professionalization and competency of a partner nation in the Long War,” Carpenter said. “Every Marine that has traveled to Azerbaijan to instruct and train the Azerbaijanis has come back with a greater understanding of the value of cooperative security events in an interesting part of the world that most Americans have never even heard of.”
Carpenter said what started with the initiative of two senior MFE SNCOs, the Azerbaijan NCO development course continues to grow and transition into a large-scale program. Working through the Marine Corps’ Security Cooperation Education and Training Center (SCETC), MFE is beginning the process of handing over the majority of the MTT mission to various schoolhouses within Marine Corps Training and Education Command.
According to Carpenter, MFE will continue to be involved in the Azerbaijan MTT through its role as the service component command of EUCOM.