The ‘Trident Jackal’ 19 exercise begins with a visit from the Chief of Staff of the Army

The Chief of Staff of the Army (JEME, to use the Spanish acronym), General Francisco J. Varela, came to the ‘San Isidro’ barracks on the 26th of September, in Minorca, where NATO’s ‘Trident Jackal’ 19 exercise is being carried out. The JEME was received by the Chief of the High Readiness Land Headquarters, Lieutenant General Francisco J. Gan. Throughout the day, the people in charge of different aspects explained to him their development and he toured the facilities which were on display for the occasion, where he saw first-hand the activity which began on the 27th of September and will last until the 7th of October.

With ‘Trident Jackal’ 19, the Alliance will validate the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps Headquarters in Bétera (Valencia) to take on the role of the Joint Headquarters of the Allied Force Structure throughout 2020. This will qualify them to plan and run the activities of a principally land-based joint operation. There will also be elements from the Navy, the Air Force and Special Operations from the command post in the headquarters.

This is a command post exercise which simulates the first phase of an operation carried out in a crisis zone and which, in this case, is the base in Minorca. In view of the big deployment, 1,200 soldiers and civilians from 23 nations have been mobilised since the 31st of August and will take part as participants, evaluators and observers. The exercise will also involve 113 vehicles, 30 trailers and 120 containers.

An explanation of how the exercise will develop