The Noble Partner 18 training exercise concluded here yesterday with a combined arms live-fire exercise and a ceremony.

This was the fourth iteration of the cooperatively-led multinational training exercise It supported the training of Georgian armed forces' mechanized and special operations forces, U.S. regionally aligned forces, U.S. Army and Air National Guardsmen from the state of Georgia, and 11 other participating nations.

"We were able to design some very challenging and complex live fires which pushed our soldiers to make decisions under pressure in an environment in which we were reliant in our Georgian partners," said Army Lt. Col. Andrew Gallo, commander of 3rd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment. "The relationship between the U.S. and the Georgians has been made much stronger at the tactical level."

Key exercise events included reception staging and unit movements, a tactical road march, combined urban operations, air assaults and combined live-fire exercises in the vicinities of the Vaziani and Camp Norio training areas.

Successful Exercise

"These tasks were not easy," said Army Brig. Gen. Reginald Neal, director of the Joint Staff for the Georgia National Guard, as he addressed a formation of soldiers from numerous countries. "But due to your perseverance, and ability to work together through daily challenges, this exercise has been a tremendous success."

The fifth iteration of the Noble Partner training exercise is scheduled for 2020, and leaders are eager to show their country’s potential.

"We didn't participate in the field with a unit-size element, but two years from now I will bring a company-size Norwegian element to train together with the Georgians and the other nations," said Norwegian army Col. Ivar Hoff. "I've done a number of deployments, I've been to war zones all over, and I saw clearly that this exercise is moving in the right direction."

Hoff added, "We have to stand together. We have to do this as one entity, one team."