Defence Secretary Philip Hammond
Vigilance can report that 1 Mechanized Brigade has taken over as Task Force Helmand in Afghanistan, officially marking the start of Operation Herrick 18.
In a short ceremony in front of British, Danish, Estonian and American partners at the Headquarters of Task Force Helmand in Lashkar Gah, Brigadier Bob Bruce, Commander of 4th Mechanized Brigade, formally handed over to Brigadier Rupert Jones, Commander of 1 Mechanized Brigade.
According to a source at the MoD over the next six months the incoming Brigade will support the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) as they lead the security of Helmand Province, advising and training as well as providing important enablers such as medical evacuation, aviation and surveillance capabilities.
Vigilance learnt both Brigadiers hosted senior ANSF officials at an evening reception in Lashkar Gah ahead of the ceremony to reflect on the successes of the winter campaign and discuss plans for the summer. A mark of the progress through the winter is that the footprint of British forces acrossHelmand Province has retracted significantly over Herrick 17. Of the 37 bases British troops occupied six months ago, only 12 remain.
The Transfer of Authority ceremony was also witnessed by Lt General Nick Carter, Deputy Commander for ISAF, Sir Richard Stagg, Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Afghanistan and the head of the Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team, Catriona Laing.
Reflecting on the successes of his tour, Brigadier Bob Bruce, Commander of Task Force Helmand for Herrick 17, said: “A huge amount has been achieved by the men and women of Task Force Helmand over the past six months, working closely with our Afghan allies. As a result of this work, the insurgency has been significantly weakened and the Afghan forces have moved into the lead for security operations. The Afghan people can see this fundamental development and so can the insurgents. There is still plenty of work to be done and I wish 1 Mechanized Brigade every success as they support the Afghan forces to win in what will be a challenging period ahead.
Brigadier Rupert Jones, Commander of Task Force Helmand for Herrick 18 said: “Thanks to the efforts and great sacrifices of those who have gone before from the ANSF and Coalition forces, the Afghans are now ready to lead operations this summer when traditionally the insurgency tends to be stronger. Our focus will be on providing them with support when it is really needed and continuing to develop their confidence and institutions, and improve the structure of their security organisations at a higher level.”
Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force make up the Task Force, and 1 Mechanized Brigade will be TFH’s lead formation until October 2013.
UK forces prepare to be tested to the limit on land, sea and in the air ahead of major international military exercise
In a related development, UK forces and their international allies are set to test their capabilities to the limit during what is planned to be the largest military exercise inEurope this year.
Nearly 13,000 military personnel from nine countries, including 5,250 from the UK, will take part in Exercise Joint Warrior this month. Taking place twice a year, the exercise aims to test and improve the way that the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force work together and with their counterparts from allied nations on operations.
Joint Warrior, which will run from 15 to 29 April in locations across the UK, will involve the full spectrum of military operations spanning all aspects of warfare, testing command and control procedures at both the strategic and tactical levels of conflict.
Exercises are designed to help prepare the Armed Forces for a wide range of operations they may be called upon to mount and will include:
- a dramatic airborne air assault and amphibious landings supported by both support and attack helicopters;
- training for security and counterinsurgency tasks;
- maritime operations with 49 ships from the Royal Navy, Canada, The Netherlands, Germany, Scandinavia and other allies securing the high seas and countering piracy;
- the involvement of up to 40 fixed-wing aircraft including RAF Tornados and Typhoons alongside Rafael and Super Etendard from the French Carrier Air Group;
- the participation of Maritime Patrol Aircraft from partner nations such as the USA, Brazil and Canada.
The Defence Secretary, Philip Hammond MP, said: “Exercises of this type ensure that our Armed Forces are prepared to meet any challenge. They give us the chance to test the way the different Services and different nations work together, something that is vital in a multi-lateral world.”
A variety of other UK and Allied Land forces will conduct Forward Air Control (FAC) training in Scotland and Northern England using defence training areas, commercial ranges, and private land areas. These will include UK units as well as US, French, Swedish, German, Italian and Dutch Marine FACs. Elements of Joint Ground Based Air Defence including Rapier fire units from 16 Regiment Royal Artillery will also practice air defence during Exercise Joint Warrior.
Exercise Joint Warrior is co-ordinated by a core team of Royal Navy and RAF personnel who make up the Joint Tactical Exercise Planning Staff (JTEPS) based at Northwood HQ in London. During the exercise staff deploy to the Joint Warfare Operations Centre (JWOC) based at Her Majesty’s Naval Base Clyde, Faslane, Scotland. A number of scenarios will be run to test capabilities in the areas of counter-terrorism, counter-smuggling, counter-piracy and interstate warfare among others.
Also, five more Australian soldiers have been identified from World War One mass graves found in northern France.
The soldiers have been identified from the graves found in Fromelles in 2009, scene of the 1916 Battle of Fromelles which was a joint operation between British and Australian troops.
In 2009, the remains of 250 unknown soldiers were recovered from the mass graves and since then a Joint Identification Board, comprising senior officers from the UK and Australia supported by scientific experts, has met regularly to seek to identify the remains. The board reconvened in London on 25 March and was able to identify five more soldiers. All five were Australian, no UK soldiers were identified.
To date, 124 remains have now been identified as named Australian soldiers, 89 as unnamed Australian soldiers, two as unnamed British soldiers and 35 remain unclassified as unknown.
Mark Francois, Minister of State for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans, said: “I want to thank all the families of those lost at Fromelles who have engaged with the project over the last four years to help identify individuals who lost their lives while bravely serving their country. I am also grateful for the work of the amateur genealogists who have given so much of their own time to track down individuals for DNA comparisons.”
Minister Francois added: “It is a remarkable achievement to identity nearly 50 per cent of the men recovered from their mass grave. This work will continue until 2014 and we look forward to further identifications being made by that time.”