After all forces and assets participating in the training had moved to the training area, the personnel of the training ground command briefed the soldiers on safety conditions. Next, the commander of the XXXIV rotation of PKW KFOR, Lieutenant Colonel Jarosław Radzimierski, discussed the course of the training and presented the objectives he had set for the PKW soldiers preparing for the mission:
The tactical and live-fire activities planned during the field training, as well as issues from various areas that may arise in the future area of operations, will require considerable effort and commitment from you, as well as the demonstration of the high level of skills acquired during your training to date. In a few days, we will begin a tactical exercise with the maneuver company to assess your readiness to carry out mandated operations. I appeal to you to observe safety rules and make maximum use of the time allocated for training.
The following days of the scheduled training were extremely intensive. After moving to and taking over the “Nothing Hill” base prepared for the exercise, the maneuver company organized its defense and protection system, while the remaining forces began organizing their workstations in accordance with the organizational structure.
That day and on the following days, the soldiers carried out live-fire tasks with their standard-issue weapons during the day and at night. The motorized platoons were tested on conducting situational firing during combat patrols and in defense of the base.
At the same time, the exercise management team, under the direction of the deputy exercise director, Captain Grzegorz Jopek, prepared the exercise command post for operations. The work resulted in readiness for the tactical exercise with the maneuver company of the XXXIV rotation of PKW KFOR, codenamed “Zasłona-I-16”.
The preliminary phase of the exercise began on 16 January this year. Following the inaugural formation, an accountability roll call was conducted, and the soldiers were tested in various areas of training activity, including their knowledge of the rules governing the use of force (rules of engagement, in English: Rules of Engagement), NATO radio communication procedures, and the basic reports required in the area of operations. After their individual equipment and ability to operate the primary radio equipment had been checked, the communications system and the flow of information within the adopted reporting system were tested.
The commander of the 23rd Artillery Regiment, Colonel Paweł Świtalski, attended the inauguration of the tactical exercise with the maneuver company. He familiarized himself with the organization and course of the training and with the achievement of the exercise’s intended objectives.
Concurrent with the exercise, the regiment commander conducted a reconnaissance for the certification exercise of the XXXIV rotation of PKW KFOR, “Prisztina-I-16”. This exercise is intended to assess the soldiers’ level of preparation for carrying out their tasks and to issue a certificate authorizing their participation in the KFOR mission—representing the Polish Armed Forces within international structures while carrying out tasks jointly.
Capt. Remigiusz Kwieciński/ii