Posted on 05/14/2008 4:23:47 PM PDT by SandRat
FORWARD OPERATING BASE HAMMER — Soldiers stationed at Combat Outpost Cleary have been working closely with soldiers from Georgia as part of Task Force Petro.
Task Force Petro is a combined effort involving the Georgian forces along with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, and the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, to bring peace to Iraq and improve living conditions both on and off of COP Cleary.
The 13th Georgian Light Infantry Battalion’s progress as a unit has been phenomenal, said Capt. Christopher Rehnberg, from Norfolk, Conn., a member of the liason team, 2nd BCT, 1st Armd. Div. He credits this to the 3rd HBCT, 3rd Inf. Div., for their hard work with the Georgians.
“The 3rd HBCT has set a high standard for [the 2nd BCT] coming in here,” Rehnberg said. “We plan to build upon that and gain trust with the Georgians.”
Rehnberg said both forces are working together to make the Mada’in Qada a more safe and secure place. Upcoming projects include building water pumps for agricultural needs, and building housing for Iraqi contractors while they work on COP Cleary.
Rehnberg also points out that up to this point, the Georgians have built everything on COP Cleary.
“These soldiers are hard working and passionate about their work,” Rehnberg said. “They did an outstanding job building the COP. We are their guests here.”
Rehnberg can speak for their work ethic since he spent time with the Georgians prior to arriving in Iraq. He was a participant in the Georgian Sustainment and Stability Operation Program, a project aimed to help the Georgians become members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
He said there is a small cultural barrier between the two units, but the distance is closing on a daily basis.
“We are learning each other’s language, plus we are both learning Arabic. Every day communication gets better,” Rehnberg said.
The Georgians pride and joy on COP Cleary is a church they built from the ground up. The church includes a picket fence and a small bell tower.
Zaza Arsoshvili, a medic in the 13th Georgian Light Infantry Battalion, said Georgia has been a Christian region for over 16 centuries. He said having the church on the COP helps soldiers feel more comfortable while away from home.
“Faith is very important in our country,” Arsoshvili said. “The church is like a small piece of home for the soldiers.”
Arsoshvili said that the Sledgehammer Soldiers of the 3rd HBCT set very high standards for Georgians and made them stronger as a battalion. While the Iron Brigade Soldiers have just begun working with the Georgians, he believes their relationship will prosper over the coming months.
“First impressions are very important and theirs was very good,” Arsoshvili said. “They are new blood and have new ideas. They can only make us better.”
Rehnberg agrees with that assessment and believes that together, Georgian and American Soldiers can improve Iraq. Over the next 15 months, the 2nd BCT and Georgian forces will assist Iraqis in repairing infrastructure and help set conditions for long-term stability in Iraq.
“These guys are our comrades,” Rehnberg said. “We need them to help complete our mission.”
The 2nd BCT, 1st Armd. Div., from Baumholder, Germany, is replacing the 3rd HBCT, 3rd Inf. Div., in the Mada’in Qada in Eastern Iraq.
"The steps that have been taken (by Russia) and the rhetoric that has been used concerning the threat of force have increased tensions and have undermined Georgia's territorial integrity," NATO spokesman James Appathurai said.
"The allies are unanimous in supporting, endorsing Georgia's territorial integrity and will not recognise or support steps that undermine that sovereignty," he said.
NATO announced at a summit early this month that Georgia would one day become a member of the 26-nation military alliance, in the face of fierce Russian opposition.
Russia objects to NATO moving closer to its borders and is deeply concerned that the breakaway regions could be destabilised by Tbilisi's rapprochement with Moscow's old Cold War-era foe.
Georgia claims that Russia has, over the last three months, strengthened its control over Abkhazia and established direct ties with the local authorities.
In a tit-for-tat measure, Tbilisi vowed Wednesday to block Russia's bid to join the World Trade Organisation unless it drops plans for direct trade links with the two regions.
The Russian peacekeeping announcement is only fuelling problems, said President Mikheil Saakashvili's new "special representative" and top Georgian diplomat, David Bakradze.
"It's hard to believe that this is being done for the purposes of peacekeeping, it's rather the beginning of full-scale military aggression," he told AFP by telephone during a trip to Brussels. ......more
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080430/wl_afp/russiageorgiamilitaryconflicttroopsnato_080430200914
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