Finding a Common Ground

Brig.-Gen. Gábor Horváth (on the right of the picture above) told us that already in the planning phase, they had placed the main emphasis on combined training.

“We progressed step by step starting with individual and trade training for soldiers and then continuing on platoon- and company levels. In what followed, after the formation of the combined US–Hungarian Battalion Task Force, of course we want to achieve the battalion-level tactical objectives. So far one of the greatest challenges has been joint task execution on company level. In contrast to previous NATO practice, we have formed multinational company task forces, which include American/Hungarian small units from different branches under combined company command. These forces have completed the cohesion training, and then executed platoon-level live fire exercises. In the closing phase of the exercise, we will conduct Battalion Task Force maneuvers coupled with live fire exercise", the brigadier-general said.

He added that in the interest of perfect joint force level activities, American and Hungarian aircraft will fly missions in support of the actions of the land forces. According to the EXDIR, it will not be possible to assess the real benefit of the exercise for Hungarian soldiers participating in Brave Warrior 2015.

“In the short run, of course, soldiers of both nations can learn a lot from each other. The militaries of these two countries are rather different in terms of their culture, traditions and procedures. Finding a common ground requires both sides to show maximum willingness to compromise, while, we must keep in view the measures of tactical efficiency, too. And I think we have already made great progress in this respect. My experience is that the American and the Hungarian partners have an open and flexible attitude to the execution of tactical tasks. In the long run, I think this cooperation makes our soldiers much more confident, since they can see that soldiers of other nations are faced with similar problems, and they can also see that more advanced technology does not automatically result in more efficient task execution", Brig.-Gen. Gábor Horváth said in summary.

The complexity of the exercise is shown by the fact that Brave Warrior 2015 includes a multinational brigade-level computer assisted command post exercise (CAX-CPX) that started on 15 October, involving the battalion headquarters as well.

Photos by Lt. Andrea Demény and the author