NATO Exercise Platinum Lion:Building a Single Force at Novo Selo

US Marines from the Black Sea Rotational Force are exercising in Bulgaria with Bulgarian and Romanian troops in Exercise Platinum Lion 16-2.Some 350 soldiers from the three NATO allies are drilling together from 7-15 January with the aim of increasing readiness and demonstrating their collective ability to operate as a single force committed to protecting the sovereignty of NATO allies and other European partners.*
Although the BSRF Marines are rotated into and out of Eastern Europe,their M1A1 Abrams tanks are now permanently based at the Platinum Lion site,the Novo Selo Training Area.On 8 January,the Marines in these M1A1s conducted manoeuvers with the Bulgarians in their T-72 tanks,in a scenario of repulsing an armoured attack.
Also on 8 January,Marines with the Combined Arms Company,BSRF and Romanian forces conducted patrols.The Marines in addition rehearsed an Anti-Personnel Obstacle Breaching System breech.The APOBS is used to clear a footpath through a wire or minefield obstacle for personnel.
On 7 January,the BSRF Marines,Bulgarian and Romanian troops had spent the afternoon familiarising themselves with each of the three country's weapons and vehicles.*
The BSRF is headquartered at Mihail Kogalniceanu Military Base,Romania.It is an element of US Marine Forces Europe and Africa.

Russian Bombers Skirt West Coast;US Marines Train in Bulgaria

Russia sent an offbeat Independence Day greeting to the US in the form of 4 nuclear bombers patrolling along the West Coast.On 4 July at 10:30 am,2 TU-95 Bear bombers approached the Alaskan coast and were intercepted by 2 US Air Force F-22 Raptor stealth fighters.Thirty minutes later,2 more TU-95s neared the California coastline and were intercepted by 2 USAF F-15 Eagles.Neither pair of the Russian Bear bombers entered the 12-mile wide expanse of US airspace,North American Aerospace Defense Command said.Interception of the bombers could have occurred up to 200 miles out from the coast,a US official noted.
A similar incident occurred on 4 July 2013.Such Russian patrols are not unprecedented,but we are positioned to respond whether Alaska or California,NORAD spokesman Michael Kucharek stated.Worldwide,Russian military aircraft have been stepping up aggressive behaviour since the Russian invasion of Crimea and Eastern Ukraine,and NATO's response to it with sanctions and increased readiness.*
Part of NATO's response is the ongoing series of exercises by the US Marine Corps' Black Sea Rotational Force and NATO allies.US Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa announced Monday 6 July that Platinum Lion 15-3 was underway at the Novo Selo Training Area in Bulgaria.Besides the BSRF Marines,participants in the two-week series of drills include Bulgaria,Romania,the UK and Albania.The exercise will strengthen the partnerships between the NATO allies and improve their military skill sets by sharing knowledge.Troops will also get to bond on a personal level,improving their cohesion as potential warfighters.
Platinum Lion 15-3 will foster interoperability through sharing ideas,thoughts,tactics,training and procedures.Among the rotations will be:
1.Classroom training;
2.Multiple live-fire events;
3.Military police training;
4.Maneuver training;and
5.A culminating event in the form of a 3-day live-fire platoon attack exercise to provide a challenging and realistic training scenario.*
I believe we have a lot to learn from each other,said US Marine Captain Michael R McNicoll,Commanding Officer of Company G,2nd Battalion,8th Marine Regiment.
Platinum Lion became one of the greatest examples in Europe of connected forces and NATO smart defence initiatives,added Colonel Iavor Mateev,Head of the Joint Military Facilities Department at the Bulgarian Defence Ministry.