Distinguished Visitors` Day, at the international exercise "Fire Shield 2019" (video)

CHISINAU, September 19, 2019 —The Distinguished Visitors` Day took place at the National Army Training Center, organized within the final phase of the international exercise "Fire Shield 2019". The event was attended by officials from the Republic of Moldova, Romania and the United States.

The activity started with an informative briefing about the scenario of the exercise. Later, guests witnessed gunfire from infantry weapons and artillery systems and visited several training sites, including the creation of explosive dams, the evacuation of the wounded. The program of the event also included parachute jumps from a height of 350 meters, performed by the soldiers of the Special Force Battalion of the National Army.

Present at the event, Minister of Defense Pavel Voicu mentioned that for the National Army it is an honor to host the "Shield of Fire", an exercise whose objective is to test the interoperability of military personnel of all weapons, training the military in the context of professionalization of the defense institution and preparation for participation in peacekeeping operations.

"For the Government of the Republic of Moldova, advancing the reform in the defense sector is a priority, and this reform can be carried out only with a trained army, staffed by professional soldiers. In these conditions, we have chosen to invest in training, in the training of troops and this can be demonstrated by the number of exercises that have increased considerably lately "said the Minister of Defense.

Pavel Voicu added that the objective of the National Army is to participate with as many soldiers as possible in international stabilization and peacekeeping operations, an objective that can only be achieved through joint training with partners.

"We are happy every time we have the opportunity to train. Today, the participating soldiers executed the missions impeccably and demonstrated that they can act together and are interoperable ", specified the Minister of Defense.

In this regard, the head of the Chisinau Defense Institution thanked the Romanian and US military for joining the "Shield of Fire" and the Governments of the two countries for cooperation and assistance in training troops this year as well.

It should be noted that the "Shield of Fire 2019" takes place between September 16-20, this year`s training over a thousand representatives of the structures within the national defense system of the Republic of Moldova and the military from Romania and the United States of America.

The purpose of the exercise is to increase the combat capability of the military units of the National Army and to increase the military capabilities.