America's North Shore Journal

Want to know where Mr. White and Mr. Black are this week? At Fuerzas Comando 2008,

a military skills competition between the best special forces teams in the western hemisphere. The event is at Camp Bullis, Texas from June 19 – 26. Security forces from 17 countries are taking part in the challenging contest, which promotes military-to-military relationships, increases interoperability and improves regional security.

U.S. Southern Command is hosting Fuerzas Comando 2008, with Special Operations Command South serving as the lead U.S. military organization for coordination of this exercise.

More than 300 military, law enforcement and civilian personnel from the participating nations are taking part in the exercise. About 150 U.S. service members from all the services are involved.

Fuerzas Comando 2008 tests the participants’ physical and psychological endurance through many obstacles both on land and in water. It includes two parts: a multinational special operations skills competition and a senior leader seminar.

Multinational Special Operations Skills Competition:

The skills competition will improve multinational regional cooperation, enhance mutual trust and confidence, and advance the training, readiness and interoperability of participating special operations forces in tactics, techniques, and procedures. There are two events:

• Assault team competition
  A physical fitness test; a confidence course; close-quarters combat; a rucksack march; water event; and an obstacle course.
• Sniper team competition
  The sniper team competition will consist of five events: a physical fitness test; marksmanship; shoot and move; range estimation; and stalk and shoot events.

Each participating nation will send a judge, a five-person Special Operations assault team and a two-man sniper team to compete in challenging tests and evaluations of their skills in special operations tactics, techniques and procedures used in counter-terrorist operations.

Senior Leader Seminar:

The senior leader seminar will help to develop, refine and improve political and military relations and multi-national cooperation in fighting terrorism and other transnational threats. The senior leader seminar focused on terrorism and fighting transnational threats will take place June 23 – 26, 2008 in San Antonio.

Nations Participating:

Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, United States, and Uruguay. Barbados and Mexico are participating as observers, gathering information to assist them in building a team for possible future Fuerzas Comando competitions.

Background:

This is the fifth consecutive year Fuerzas Comando has taken place in SOUTHCOM’s area of focus.