Final planning conference for exercise Combined Endeavor 2012

The week-long final planning conference for exercise Combined Endeavor 2012 (CE12), U.S. European Command’s largest communications interoperability exercise, began today with more than 250 participants attending to finalize the planning and testing for this year’s exercise.

Ms. Mira Cerović, Montenegrin Deputy Minister for Development and Protection of Information and Communication Systems, welcomed national representatives and planners from 37 NATO and Partnership for Peace (PfP) countries.

 “Participants of the Final Planning Conference for the exercise COMBINED ENDEAVOR 2012, on behalf of the Minister of Defense of Montenegro Ms Doctor Milica Pejanović Đurišić, Vice Admiral Dragan Samardžić, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed forces of Montenegro, and myself, I want to greet you and to wish you welcome to Montenegro.”

Montenegrin Deputy Minister discussed Montenegro’s history with Combined Endeavor, while stressing the importance of this exercise for testing and development of Montenegrin communication systems.

“As you already know, COMBINED ENDEAVOR is the world’s most important and largest military exercise in the field of telecommunications and informatics, so it is a special honour for us that  Montenegro, fourth years in a row, organizes the final planning conference.“

"Since 2008, Montenegro has participated in Combined Endeavor as a full participant. Montenegro is one of the smallest nations and has one of the smallest armed forces at exercise, and by organizing this conference, we hope to contribute success of exercise. Montenegro Armed Forces is committed to this exercise and its goals, and we commit to develop our CIS technologies and human relations with all participating nations.”

Combined Endeavor is a EUCOM-sponsored, multinational initiative intended to encourage interoperability and information exchange among nations with common stability, security and sustainment goals and objectives via communications networks and subsequent collaborative links. This week’s FPC in Budva gives the delegations and components the opportunity to finalize operational test strings and wrap-up the technical planning for this September’s exercise.

Lt. Col. Brian Heberlie, the CE12 exercise director, commented on the work taking place this week at the FPC,

“The final planning conference is our last chance to finalize all of the technical testing and firm up the enormous logistics requirements needed to support 38 nations and 1 international organization at the exercise.  With the addition of Air and Maritime C4 forces, we'll have an opportunity to test expanded commander's critical information exchanges across tactical networks and operational C2 systems.  The most difficult part of the process, the planning, is almost complete and then we can move forward to Grafenwöhr, where we watch the culmination of all the hard work.  This year has been exciting and challenging and we look forward to finishing the work together as a team this fall."  

Combined Endeavor 2012 will take place in Grafenwoehr, Germany, September 7-20, 2012.