The following article is taken from the latest issue of the Globe & Laurel magazine.
Click the button below to discover more.
Ex Flintlock is an annual, multinational military exercise organised and led by the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) since 2005. The exercise focuses on enhancing the capabilities and interoperability of participating nations to combat violent extremism, terrorism and various transnational threats across the Sahel region of Africa. It involves military forces from North and West Africa, Europe and the United States, emphasising regional cooperation, operational readiness and the strengthening of partnerships among these nations.
The objectives of Flintlock are to enhance counterterrorism capabilities of African Partner Nations through training in tactical operations, intelligence sharing and specialised skills to combat terrorist groups. Additionally, it aims to improve interoperability by standardising procedures, enhancing communication and conducting joint operations, thereby fostering greater multinational cooperation and coordination. The exercise also focuses on building the capacity of African militaries by providing training and resources in logistics, medical support and engineering to maintain regional security and stability. Furthermore, Flintlock seeks to improve civil-military relations by involving civilian organisations and local communities in the exercise, thus building trust and cooperation between the military and the civilian population.
The exercise comprised field training exercises in combat scenarios in diverse terrain alongside Command Post Exercises to plan and execute military operations. There were also live fire exercises to enhance combat readiness with medical training focused on emergency care and support in combat. With over 1300 troops from 30 nations, this was a large package and clearly enabled regional stability and security especially with partner African nations near the Sahel region who face security challenges from terrorist groups such as Boko Haram, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS).
A medical team from CLR comprising an ER Consultant, Operating Department Practitioner, Critical Care Nurse and Medics deployed to Daboya, Ghana. Integrating with medical teams from the United States, Canada, Czech Republic and Ghana, we collectively provided all round medical support to exercise participants. This included medical cover for the exercise from primary healthcare up to damage control surgery as well as sharing best practice and providing lessons to a host of partners. For us, we formed a joint team with the USA, Canada and Czech Republic once again proving NATO interoperability by forming a Canadian-led Role 2 Medical Facility in a mass casualty scenario.
To find out more about Commando Logistics Regiment and further RM activities across the globe, catch up regularly with all the news in the Globe & Laurel Magazine, the Journal of the Royal Marines.
Read more from the Journal of the Royal Marines
For more information, and to read similar stories, visit:
Globe & Laurel – RMA – The Royal Marines Charity (rma-trmc.org)
