Military exercise "Immediate Response" an absolute success

The two-week military exercise "Immediate Response", which involved over 700 soldiers from the Croatian Army, the US Army and the armed forces of six other nations, ended successfully with a closing ceremony on June 9, the US Embassy said in a statement on Wednesday.

"I think we can all agree that the exercise has been an absolute success," Croatian Army Brigadier Ivan Turkalj said. His American colleague, Brigadier Andrew Heppelmann, said that the exercise, held at Slunj, had displayed a high level of excellence, with emphasis on tactic, technique, procedure, and maintenance.

The exercise was part of joint training and exercises of the United States European Command and the United States Army Europe. One of its goals was to prepare personnel for participation in the NATO-led ISAF mission in Afghanistan and to exchange lessons learned from the ISAF.

In addition to the Croatian Army and US Army troops, the exercise also involved military personnel from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia. (Hina)