MAGAZINE
Photos : Taras GREN , Military Journalist , Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
FALL 2020
We also participated in a meaningful dialogue with the leadership of the Netherlands-based Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum on the study and transfer of their experiences and their implementation of theory into practice . It is very gratifying that officers from France , the United Kingdom , Bulgaria , Lithuania and Latvia all took part in this dialogue . designed for command and control at the strategic level , will be responsible for conducting joint operations within the territory of Ukraine as well as peacekeeping operations abroad . The main purpose of the command is to manage groups of troops , as well as interdepartmental units of both the defence and security forces , all of which now fall under Joint Force control in order to counter adversarial aggression on land , in the air , and at sea .
I believe that this innovation is of very deep importance . It finally separates us from the Soviet principles of military management and brings us closer to the standards of the armed forces of NATO member countries . It is the result of close cooperation with foreign partners and advisers who teach the Western approach , as well as the Western way of thinking regarding the preparation and conduct of military operations and combat operations .
the division of functions between the governing bodies that allows us to focus on the use of the Armed Forces or their separate components , which , in specific cases , is used to resolve crisis situations , eliminate certain local military conflicts , or repel full-scale aggression by the enemy .
As a staff we held a number of meetings with foreign partners . In particular , we visited Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe ( SHAPE ) in Mons , Belgium , the strategic home for NATO Allied Command Operations . There we met in person with their Chief of Staff at the time , General Markus Kneip , his deputies , as well as the chiefs of each J-structure .
In addition , during a visit to the Operational Command of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland and their Ground Forces Command , we had the opportunity to gain experience through discussions with Polish commanders and senior air and naval component officers , as well as commanders and senior officers assigned to their J-structures .
It is a well-known fact that the Republic of Poland was once part of the Warsaw Pact and was a satellite of the USSR . Today , however , it is a full and modernized member of NATO . This is why Poland ’ s experience at this stage of our formation is extremely important and useful to us because it is based on the transition from the outdated Soviet way of thinking to the progressive and modern Western model . During this visit we were also very happy to share with our Polish colleagues our own experience of conducting the Joint Forces operation in Donetsk and Luhansk regions . This made our meeting mutually beneficial for both parties .
Change : A Critical Task and a Process Regarding the task of changing the overall command and control system , our team of professionals carried out long and painstaking work on the study of foreign experience and its adaptation to the idiosyncrasies and conditions inherent to the Armed Forces of Ukraine .
First of all , we based our approach on the tactical and strategic combat experience of the Ukrainian army . After all , it is
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