Nov 6 2023

Combat engineers from across NATO gather in Latvia to enhance interoperability

SZCZECIN, Poland – At the end of October, combat engineers from across the Alliance participated in exercise Verboom V. Organised by NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup Latvia and held in Camp Ādaži, this periodical event saw multinational troops training together to hone each other's skills and foster interoperability.

395726264_641582364815192_3062807620003855799_n-Pym8H1

Exercise Verboom enables Allies strengthen NATO's deterrence and defence in the field of combat engineering © Captain Joffray Provencher, Staff Sergeant Oscar Gollaz, Corporal Lynette Ai Dang

Exercise Verboom was conducted for the fifth time, and consisted of NATO forces demonstrating various engineering tasks, capabilities and techniques. Among the participating Allies were Albania, Canada, Czechia, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Clinton Brown, Commander 9th Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, found this training event extremely beneficial:

Verboom absolutely makes us a more ready and capable force, not only for the Battlegroup in Latvia but across NATO, bringing together engineers and understanding what our capabilities are.

Combat engineers are a vital resource, and they undertake a very broad range of tasks and skillsets. They may be required to breach a minefield during an advance in contact, rebuild a school or dispose of explosive remnants of war to assist the local population to return to prosperity after a conflict. To achieve their diverse range of tasks, engineers include a wide range of qualifications and trades aligned to combat and construction engineering – areas that are interdependent and often intertwined.