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Photo Provided by NRDC Spain Photo Provided by NRDC Spain control over the VJTF as stated by the Commander of the Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum and reported to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe .
Importantly to add , providing a closer insight into an assigned Area of Responsibility would have not been fully possible without a tight cooperation with the Corps ’ subordinated entities – the NATO Force Integration Units ( NFIUs ), established in September 2015 in Poland , Estonia , Latvia and Lithuania . These new liaison headquarters have already made a great contribution to the situational awareness in the region . They are also operationally ready to create the conditions for the Allied forces to be quickly deployed if ever there is a crisis within the Baltic area . Exactly a year after launching the first four NFIUs ,
the Headquarters in Szczecin assumed command over another two units – Hungarian and Slovakian . Altogether , the Corps and the NFIUs have essentially improved the responsiveness of NATO along its Northeastern borders . Some challenges , however , are still to be faced .
“ We ’ re not at the end of the venue . The next step will be to prepare ourselves for the new enhanced forward presence . – indicates General Hofmann – Although the discussion and planning in NATO is still ongoing , I am quite sure that our Headquarters will play an important role within enhanced forward presence .”
Having reached the objectives coming out of the Readiness Action Plan , the Corps is now preparing for getting certified as the High
Readiness Force Headquarters in mid 2017 . The training and exercise plan is and continues to be demanding . Still , with the progress that has been made in-between the two NATO Summits , the Corps has already become the NATO custodian of regional security providing a permanent presence on the Alliance ’ s Northeastern flank . The official stamp given in the Warsaw Summit Declaration has been a final confirmation that all of the hard work that has been done over the last several months to implement new Standard Operating Procedures has been effective .
“ It shows that we are an important part of the game , that we have a key role to play in this region . It is also a huge responsibility on our shoulders . And for sure something to be proud of .” – summarizes General Hofmann .
Exercise Brilliant Jump 2016 Żagań DVDay ( Photo by Karol Sito , Adam Lapszynski )
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