A two-week bilateral military training exercise involving 317 members
of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) and 139 U.S. Army troops
began Thursday in Kompong Speu province at the Training Center for
Multinational Peacekeeping Forces.
Held once a year, the Angkor Sentinel 2013 military exercise, will
concentrate on training Cambodian forces in peacekeeping and
humanitarian operations.
Lieutenant
Colonel Kinsey McFadden, right, has his blood pressure checked by Sek
Veth as part of the Angkor Sentinel military exercises yesterday in
Kompong Speu province. (Simon Henderson/The Cambodia Daily)
“[Cooperating with] exercises like Angkor Sentinel prepares us to
address both traditional dilemmas such as flooding, and unconventional
threats that cross borders,” said Jeff Daigle, deputy chief of mission
at the U.S. Embassy, speaking at the opening ceremony.
As well as carrying out exercises in leadership and medical training,
military officials said the two-week training would also concentrate on
building relations between the two armies.
“I don’t know who the real winner is, the Cambodian military or the
U.S.,” said Master Sergent Paul Evans, chief medical planner for the
Pacific region, explaining that U.S. troops were not just there to
teach.
While the U.S. troops have extensive experience in combat, the skills
and experience RCAF peacekeeping troops have gained in South Sudan and
Lebanon, among other places, means they have a lot to share with their
U.S. counterparts, Sgt. Evans said.
“Especially the demining guys; those guys are incredible, and they do it with a smile,” he added.
The ceremony closed with about 150 U.S. and Cambodian soldiers
donating blood to promote the National Blood Transfusion Center’s drive
for blood donations. It acknowledged the medical treatment given to U.S.
demining specialists injured in January in Kompong Chhnang province
after an accidental explosion during a training exercise.
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