Minister of Defense of Bosnia and Herzegovina Sifet Podžić, Chief of the Joint Staff of the Armed Forces of B&H (AFB&H) Colonel General Senad Mašović, Commander of the Operational Command of the AF B&H Major General Radovan Ilić and Chief of ODC at US Embassy in B&H Major Taib Grozdanić, at the AFB&H Combat Training Center in Manjača near Banja Luka officially presented the bilateral exercise of the AF B&H and the United States Armed Forces "Immediate Response 21".
The Commander of the Command for Training and Doctrine of the AF B&H, Brigadier Slaven Blavicki, was also available to the media, as the director of the exercise "Immediate Response 21".
The exercise, in which about 500 members of the AF B&H and about 700 US soldiers will take part, will be held at the military training grounds of the AF B&H at Manjača and Glamoč, as well as at the barracks and Dubrava airport near Tuzla from May 17 to June 2.
The B&H Presidency approved this exercise in February 2020.
The "Immediate Response 21" exercise is part of a large multinational exercise "Defender Europe 21" conducted by the US Armed Forces Europe and Africa Command, linking four different military exercises on European soil.
The exercise gathers a total of about 28,000 participants in four related exercises, which will be held at 31 military training grounds in 12 countries, with the participation of armed forces from a total of 27 countries.
The head of the ODC at the US Embassy in B&H, Major Taib Grozdanić, reminded that this is the largest exercise of the Armed Forces of B&H in recent history, emphasizing that "when you have good partners, everything is much easier."
Special attention at the exercise will be paid to the compliance with epidemiological measures against the COVID-19 pandemic.
Journalists will also be invited to witness the arrival of the majority of the US forces at the Sarajevo International Airport this week, and a special day that will be held for the distinguished guests near the end of the exercise at Manjača, stated the Public Relations Office of the Ministry of Defense of B&H.