Second US-Trained Battalion on Guard
Georgia obtains another battalion trained by the US military instructors along with the 11th Brigade Commando Battalion. Sachkhere 16th Mountain Battalion of the National Guard has officially graduated the US-funded Georgian Train and Equip Program (GTEP) on May 10.
“Today I can say: anyone who humiliates pride of my country will pay a very high price,” Georgian Defense Minister David Tevzadze said looking at the US-trained 500 soldiers of the Sachkhere Battalion.
The graduation ceremony held on the Republic Square of the capital city Tbilisi, which was attended by the Georgian President, the Defense Minister, US Ambassador in Georgia and other officials.
In their speeches the President and the Defense Minister underlined that particular importance of the GTEP program is facilitation to transformation of the Georgian armed forces to the NATO standards.
“This program creates the core of the Georgian professional army, which would allow Georgia to become a significant part of the Euro-Atlantic military-political structure in the nearest years,” President Shevardnadze said.
David Tevzadze recalled times, when the Sachkhere Mountain Battalion was just creating 12 years ago.
“Those days many people thought what this battalion would do. Founder of the battalion Besik Kutateladze said that day that soon the time will come when this battalion will be trained and equipped under the NATO standards. Today we witnessed that this dream has come true,” David Tevzadze said at the ceremony.
The US Ambassador Richard Miles and the chief of the GTEP program Scott Campbell thanked the Georgian soldiers and officers for contributing to successful conduction of the program.
However, not every soldier was able to keep up with the harshest discipline, imposed by the US Marines during the training. In April the Georgian Defense Ministry cancelled contracts with 9 soldiers for undisciplined behavior and dismissed them from the military service.
“This training program draws high-level interest of not only Georgian and the US governments, but also of neighboring governments. Every one can see that the GTEP is the true model of affective military transformation,” US ambassador in Georgia Richard Miles said at the ceremony.
“We shared many difficulties and joy together. This phase is completed. However other phases of GTEP and many challenges still remain. GTEP is just one step in the continuing process of enhancement of the Georgian army,” Scot Campbell, chief of the GTEP program in Georgia, said in his official speech at the ceremony.
Two other Georgian battalions will be trained under the program. Kodjori Special Operations Unit will start the training at the end of May, after which training of the tank and mechanized infantry unit from Vaziani will start. The Georgian Defense Ministry and the American military instructors say that the program is implemented without delays and will end in 2004 as scheduled.
The Georgian Train and Equip Program, for which the US Government has allocated 64 million dollars, started exactly one year ago.
The trained soldiers will be contracted for three-and-a-half years and receive highest salaries in the Georgian army. The Georgian side undertook to pay wages of the trained militaries. Currently salaries for these officers and soldiers vary between 400-800 Georgian Lari per-month (approximately $180-360), depending on a rank.
So far the Command & Control Center and 11th Brigade Commando Battalion were trained and equipped along with the Sachkhere Battalion in frames of the GTEP.
By Giorgi Sepashvili, Civil Georgia
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