Fairford, United Kingdom - General Jörg Vollmer, Commander Joint Force Command Brunssum (JFCBS), visited NATO’s Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) in Gloucestershire, England, on 18 November to observe the ongoing NATO Exercise LOYAL LEDA 20.
General Vollmer met with the ARRC Commander, Lieutenant General Sir Edward Smyth-Osbourne, to receive an overview of the exercise and to utilise the opportunity to address the leadership staff.
LOYAL LEDA 20 has demonstrated NATO's capability to conduct Corps Warfighting
The aim of Exercise is for HQ ARRC to complete their NATO Combat Readiness Evaluation and be certified at Full Operational Capability as NATO’s War Fighting Corps at readiness. This means HQ ARRC is ready to be deployed at short-notice, by NATO, on large-scale operations up to and including high intensity warfare that would see the headquarters in a position of command and control across the full spectrum of military operations.
"LOYAL LEDA 20 has demonstrated NATO's capability to conduct Corps Warfighting. The ARRC has successfully trained to command up to 120,000 personnel in support of the Alliance. This is a major contribution to NATO and provides a fine example for the rest of the Alliance to follow", General Vollmer highlighted.
During the visit the Commander also met with Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), General Tod Wolters and the British Chief of Defence, General Sir Nick Carter for bilateral talks on various topics including multinational engagement in NATO’s enhanced Forward Presence on the Alliance’s north-eastern flank