Macedonian peacekeepers remain alongside their allies both in missions and in exercises
Skopje, 26 May 2021 (MIA) - Peace operations in vehicle and foot patrols, securing a base, escorting convoys and playing out a large number of incidents like coming across displaced people, convoy attacks and many combat shooting exercises have been held during the first week of the Decisive Strike 21 military exercise taking place at the Krivolak army polygon from May 17 until June 1, 2021.
North Macedonia’s Army during one of the drills demonstrated its preparation and ability in action where it peacefully continued the movement of the military convoy meant to deliver food and medicine to a village, which got intercepted by a larger group of migrants that blocked the army vehicles’ path.
This is one of the more successful incident simulations performed by the Second Infantry Battalion of the Army of the Republic of North Macedonia, a declared unit, as part of Decisive Strike 21.
With around 1,500 army members from four countries, Decisive Strike 21, the multinational exercise is the first one organized and led by the Army of the Republic of North Macedonia after becoming a member of NATO, alongside the Unites States Army. NATO allies, Bulgaria and Greece, are also participating as part of the USEUCOM-AF mutual drill program. It is part of NATO’s largest exercise held done on European soil called Defender Europe 21 led by the US Army. It is organized on the territory of 12 countries on 30 military training grounds, with the participation of 27 countries and 28,000 soldiers.
The Decisive Strike 21 scenario involves demonstrating preparedness with the use of credible collective defense, including computer backed rills, field training and military shooting drills. Synchronizing combined armed forces and confirmation of tactics, techniques and procedures with other members of NATO to conduct coordinated conventional and united operations in urban environments in any weather conditions. Improving the level of interoperability of declared squads and practicing with partner countries.
The drill, among other things, promotes the Krivolak military training capacities, confirms the national RSOI (Reception, Staging, Onward Movement and Integration) partner procedures, confirms commanding effectiveness by realizing the process of making a military decision, through using analog and digital processes, as well as building preparedness and mutual operative synchronicity between NATO armies and partner armies through a wide array of near-simultaneous operations conducted in multiple areas.
The four armies are using infantry ammunition of 5.56 mm, 7.62 mm, 7.9 mm and artillery ammo of 82 and 120 mm, and the simulations are done with MI 7/18 and 24 choppers, as well as the armored transporters Hermalin and Hummer.
Colonel Blazhe Nikolovski, drill director, told a drill briefing that Decisive Strike 21 is an excellent opportunity to strengthen the interoperability of the Macedonian army with other participating countries and NATO allies, increasing battle readiness and a confirmation of the efforts to transform the army.
The battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel Stojanche Kostov said that the light infantry battalion is a primary unit and the biggest NATO capacity that is participating in this drill. The drill is based on a fictitious scenario that aims to demonstrate a readiness of the NATO forces for collective defense that will then become a counterattack, Kostov has said.
“The goal of the drill is to show interoperability among our partners and NATO’s partners. The light infantry battalion has multiple goals to fulfil the drill, one of them is to show momentary readiness. The fourth assistance and support brigade of the USA army is a part of the drill, which trains and counsels the light infantry battalion with its three teams, and these teams will be with our unit until the end of the year,” Kostov said.
According to the army’s General Staff spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Toni Janevski, the drill aims to show interoperability and our readiness to do common activities in peace operations and other drill activities.
“The Army of the Republic of North Macedonia and the General Staff gave all of their capacities in order to let us present ourselves in the best way possible, so that we could present a drill worthy of any NATO partner, as an equal member of the Alliance,” Janevski pointed out.
NATO top representative, Brigadier General Jonathan Chestnut, deemed that the mutual and hard work, maintaining collective spirit, unity and solidarity make this alliance special. Colonel Blazhe Nikolovski, drill director, said that the success of Decisive Strike 21 rests in the participants’ hands, and only hard work will lead to an increase in experience and knowledge.
Several months’ worth of individual and collective field preparations in various situations to successfully complete tasks done at the drill preceded the drill, and the engineers, alongside the ally armies built a full access to the polygons, as well as building a polygon storage and moving targets for armored vehicles.
A civilian-military cooperation will be realized as part the drill, through which firefighting equipment will be donated to the firefighting society in Konche, and the local school in the village of Brzhdani in Kichevo will receive a dumpster as a donation.
In order to protect the environment, experts from the Goce Delchev University of Shtip are monitoring air quality parameters at the polygon, and the results are available to the public.
https://youtu.be/LAoVKCO1NmM
Boris Kunoski
Photos by Darko Popov
Translated by Dragana Knezhevikj
With around 1,500 army members from four countries, Decisive Strike 21, the multinational exercise is the first one organized and led by the Army of the Republic of North Macedonia after becoming a member of NATO, alongside the Unites States Army. NATO allies, Bulgaria and Greece, are also participating as part of the USEUCOM-AF mutual drill program. It is part of NATO’s largest exercise held done on European soil called Defender Europe 21 led by the US Army. It is organized on the territory of 12 countries on 30 military training grounds, with the participation of 27 countries and 28,000 soldiers.
The Decisive Strike 21 scenario involves demonstrating preparedness with the use of credible collective defense, including computer backed rills, field training and military shooting drills. Synchronizing combined armed forces and confirmation of tactics, techniques and procedures with other members of NATO to conduct coordinated conventional and united operations in urban environments in any weather conditions. Improving the level of interoperability of declared squads and practicing with partner countries.
The drill, among other things, promotes the Krivolak military training capacities, confirms the national RSOI (Reception, Staging, Onward Movement and Integration) partner procedures, confirms commanding effectiveness by realizing the process of making a military decision, through using analog and digital processes, as well as building preparedness and mutual operative synchronicity between NATO armies and partner armies through a wide array of near-simultaneous operations conducted in multiple areas.
The four armies are using infantry ammunition of 5.56 mm, 7.62 mm, 7.9 mm and artillery ammo of 82 and 120 mm, and the simulations are done with MI 7/18 and 24 choppers, as well as the armored transporters Hermalin and Hummer.
Colonel Blazhe Nikolovski, drill director, told a drill briefing that Decisive Strike 21 is an excellent opportunity to strengthen the interoperability of the Macedonian army with other participating countries and NATO allies, increasing battle readiness and a confirmation of the efforts to transform the army.
The battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel Stojanche Kostov said that the light infantry battalion is a primary unit and the biggest NATO capacity that is participating in this drill. The drill is based on a fictitious scenario that aims to demonstrate a readiness of the NATO forces for collective defense that will then become a counterattack, Kostov has said.
“The goal of the drill is to show interoperability among our partners and NATO’s partners. The light infantry battalion has multiple goals to fulfil the drill, one of them is to show momentary readiness. The fourth assistance and support brigade of the USA army is a part of the drill, which trains and counsels the light infantry battalion with its three teams, and these teams will be with our unit until the end of the year,” Kostov said.
According to the army’s General Staff spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Toni Janevski, the drill aims to show interoperability and our readiness to do common activities in peace operations and other drill activities.
“The Army of the Republic of North Macedonia and the General Staff gave all of their capacities in order to let us present ourselves in the best way possible, so that we could present a drill worthy of any NATO partner, as an equal member of the Alliance,” Janevski pointed out.
NATO top representative, Brigadier General Jonathan Chestnut, deemed that the mutual and hard work, maintaining collective spirit, unity and solidarity make this alliance special. Colonel Blazhe Nikolovski, drill director, said that the success of Decisive Strike 21 rests in the participants’ hands, and only hard work will lead to an increase in experience and knowledge.
Several months’ worth of individual and collective field preparations in various situations to successfully complete tasks done at the drill preceded the drill, and the engineers, alongside the ally armies built a full access to the polygons, as well as building a polygon storage and moving targets for armored vehicles.
A civilian-military cooperation will be realized as part the drill, through which firefighting equipment will be donated to the firefighting society in Konche, and the local school in the village of Brzhdani in Kichevo will receive a dumpster as a donation.
In order to protect the environment, experts from the Goce Delchev University of Shtip are monitoring air quality parameters at the polygon, and the results are available to the public.
https://youtu.be/LAoVKCO1NmM
Boris Kunoski
Photos by Darko Popov
Translated by Dragana Knezhevikj 
