Irish Troops Training For EU Battle Groups

[Hello Alaska]

Irish in training for EU battlegroups


The first group of Irish soldiers to participate in EU battlegroups are currently undergoing training for the new units.

Chief of Staff Lt Gen Dermot Earley said the battlegroups will be ready to serve at short notice in both peacekeeping and disaster situations around the world.

Most of the 100 Irish soldiers assigned to an EU battlegroup were shaping up for their new role at Kilworth Camp in Co Cork this afternoon.

They will undergo further training in Sweden before the battlegroup officially goes on standby in January.

Ireland is providing a sophisticated bomb disposal and mine clearance unit to the Nordic Battlegroup, which will be composed of 2,000 troops - mostly from Sweden, Estonia, Norway and Finland.

The standby battlegroups are being set up so that Europe can respond to disasters or emergencies at five days notice to trouble spots around the world.

They would stay for about three months - sometimes until a bigger peacekeeping force arrives.

Irish missions abroad will still need the approval of the Government and the UN.

The Minister for Defence, Willie O'Dea, said the new battlegroups are not a European army in any shape or form, insisting that Ireland's participation does not undermine Ireland's traditional neutrality

http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/0720/defence.html

There's already people giving out....... Anyone who watched the RTE News would have seen that bloke from the Socialist Party telling us all how the lads certainly won't be going there to help at all but instead have the ability to kill or go to war(Not sure which it was?) but it won't be for normal people, they'll be doing it for the rich

[Goldie fish]

An army with the ability to kill?

Whatever next.

Painters who paint?

[Komsomol]

An army with the ability to kill?

Whatever next.

Painters who paint?

thats crazy talk goldie

[O'Duffy]

thats crazy talk goldie

But the Irish Army only use blanks I thought??:confused: :confusedilly gooses

[Komsomol]

no no no, paintballs. Alcohol flavoured.

[luchi]

no no no, paintballs. Alcohol flavoured.

Would they not be called "Alco-balls" then?

[Truck Driver]

Would they not be called "Alco-balls" then?

No, that would be the Xmas dinner ....

[Groundhog]

Didn't the Greens want to re-name these Peace Groups or some such.

[ZULU]

There was a piece in the Irish Times today on Irish Troops heading off to Sweden to participate in a full scale Ex. Does anyone have the digital version of it? Cant find it on the interweb.

[concussion]

The Irish Times Online
Last Updated: 18/10/2007 06:42
Irish troops in first foreign exercise

"The Irish army will today participate in the first overseas group training exercise in the history of the State.

Troops will leave for Sweden to join soldiers from four other nations ahead of participation in a new Nordic EU battlegroup from January.

Almost 100 Irish soldiers will join others from Sweden, Finland, Norway and Estonia in northern Sweden for the next four weeks.

The group, which collectively numbers 2,600, will take part in an exercise across Sweden to improve the co-ordination of the forces."



RTE News Online
Defence Forces train for new EU battlegroup
Thursday, 18 October 2007 19:35
"Over 80 members of the Defence Forces are in Sweden in a month-long training exercise for the new Nordic EU battlegroup.

From 1 January, the Nordic battlegroup will be on standby for six months to be deployed at five days notice to any trouble spot around the world.

Most of the 2,600 troops in the battlegroup are from Sweden. Ireland, Finland, Norway and Estonia are supplying 300 soldiers in total. Most of the Irish troops are from the Western Brigade.


Over the next few weeks, the Irish soldiers will stay in Skövde where they will join up with troops from the other battlegroup nations. They will carry out initial training to get all of the troops familiar with each other's operating procedures.

The main exercise takes place in early November inside the Arctic Circle where temperatures can get as low as -28 degrees C.

On returning to Ireland in November the troops will undergo final preparations for battlegroup standby."

[Goldie fish]

Some arctic warfare for the boys and girls. They'll love that.

[eroo]

when is the recconaissance team due back?

eroo

[Goldie fish]

when is the recconaissance team due back?

eroo

Some time after they get there.

Yeah,Thats why all those Iraqi Warplanes were let use shannon on their way to attack the US :wink:

If Iraq had an air force after 1991, there would have been no objection letting them use shannon. However that war is over. Iraq are Friends of the USA now, remember?

(troll)

[mutter nutter]

[yooklid]

How long before that mission patch ends up on ebay?