As preparation for EXERCISE TRADEWINDS 2022 intensify, lead planners for participating countries are currently engaged in an Initial Planning Conference at the Ramada Princess Hotel.
The conference, which is being conducted in a hybrid fashion, includes participation from 24 countries and will lay the groundwork for the exercise to be hosted in July 2023, a release from the Guyana Defence Force said.
Staff Officer One General Three ( Operations and Training), Lieutenant Colonel Andy Pompey, welcomed the visiting delegations.
Last week, a team of planners visited several locations across the country, including military bases, where several aspects of the exercise will occur, the release said.
The visits enabled the planners to conduct logistical site surveys of the respective locations. These locations included areas in Corentyne, Berbice, Moleson Creek and the Guyana Defence Force’s Colonel Robert Mitchell Jungle and Amphibious Training School (CRMJATS), where some training will be held.
EXERCISE TRADEWINDS is a US SOUTH COM-sponsored exercise aiming to increase regional training capacity and the readiness of all participating forces. Another of its objectives is to broaden the Caribbean Region’s capability to mitigate, plan for, and respond to crisis and increase interagency integration in the Caribbean, specifically with US Forces, Regional Organisations and partner nation forces.
Staff Officer One General Five (Future Plans and Strategy), Major Jaime Castello, is Guyana’s Lead Planner for the Exercise, the release said. Guyana will host Exercise Tradewinds from July 14-28, 2023.