US Soldiers Serve in Multinational Exercise

Exercise Loyal Leda 2022, a combat readiness evaluation exercise, has certified NATO Rapid Deployable Corps - Turkiye as the alliance’s warfighting corps for 2023.

The 10-day combat readiness evaluation exercise, hosted at the NATO Joint Force Training Centre in Poland from 30 November to 9 December, is an Allied Land Command-sponsored, land domain, tactical level, virtual command post exercise.

“The Loyal Leda series of exercises is one of the premier annual training events for the Joint Force Training Centre as well as NATO,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Jennifer Gotie, JFTC Training Division. “Developed using state-of-the-art, computer-based simulation and tailored scenarios, participants are immersed in simulated reality allowing them to build on existing relationships as well as identify gaps and develop greater interoperability.”

“Additionally, it provides an opportunity to improve and strengthen our partnerships with non-NATO nations, providing a platform to work shoulder to shoulder to deliver unified effects. Exercises like Loyal Leda continue to reinforce why NATO is the most powerful alliance on the planet,” said Gotie.

U.S. Soldiers are embedded in every echelon of the NATO command structure and serve alongside service members from partner nations in critical roles. In many cases NATO units also serve a critical role in the host nation force structure.

U.S. Army Maj. Steven D. Hansen, Allied Land Command G9, said the exercise showed the continued importance for joint multinational training in NATO.

“The exercise demonstrated the challenges of fighting in multi-domain, high-intensity conflict while in a multinational environment,” said Hansen. “NRDC-Turkiye and Multinational Corps - Southeast along with the other training audiences were able to dynamically work through problems and accomplish their missions in tight, constrained environments.”

NATO Rapid Deployable Corps - Spain was NRDC – Turkiye’s simulated partner corps on their left flank during the exercise.

“The importance of Loyal Leda is the opportunity to train the largest land maneuver effort in NATO. With multiple corps, the real formation would probably exceed a hundred thousand soldiers,” said U.S. Army Maj. Robert Payne, NRDC - Spain G3. “My organization being part of that training effort provides us the best insight in how to enhance our ability to: one, be part of that massive multinational land force and two, improve our processes based off the lessons learned we get by training.”

“The biggest benefit of this exercise to the alliance members is without a doubt that everybody in the scenario is thinking together, we are problem solving together, as iron sharpens iron, we are sharpening our forces through this interaction,” said Payne. “That’s the win for America and in fact all our partner nations participating today.”