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A Fiery Week in target ranges across the country

Two wide-scope multinational exercises, Ramstein Legacy and Scorpions Legacy, respectively, have recently been hosted by the target ranges in south-eastern Romania’s Capu Midia and Cincu, in central Romania.

Eugen Nasta, 19.06.2024, 14:00

1,300 Romanian military jointly with their partners from nine other allied countries have been deployed as part of the Ramstein Legacy 24 air and anti-missile training exercise led by the Allied Air Commander and concurrently held in Romania and Bulgaria. Therefore, the set target of the exercise was the engagement of a multinational structure for a defense operation of the territory and the population.

PATRIOT and HAWK rocket systems have been used, as well as F-16, IAR-330 and IAR-96 aircrafts, ground-based air defense systems, command-control systems and military aircrafts of the participating countries. All throughout the 11 days of the training, the German military were visited by Ambassador Peer Gebauer. After Romania and Bulgaria, Germany was the biggest suppliers of troops for the Ramstein Legacy 24 exercise.

In Romania, the exercise was connected to the DACIA 24 operative-tactical level multi-tasking training platform. A national objective in the unfolding of the exercise was finalizing the operationalization process of the second PATRIOT system which, following the live fire in Capu Midia range, was certified as mission-capable.

The second training event connected to DACIA 24 is Scorpions Legacy 24. It is the exercise of the ground forces, organized by Southern Romania’s Craiova-based Southeast Multinational Brigade, staged in the Cincu range. Taking part in the exercise are roughly 1,600 Romanian and allied military (from Belgium, France, Italy, North Macedonia, Poland and Portugal). The set target of the exercise is strengthening the multinational cohesion through tactical training on the ground, with live fire.

In a separate move, 200 Romanian and around 50 foreign military have represented the forces involved in „Eurasian Partnership Mine Counter Measure Dive 24” Multinational Exercise, led by the Diving Centre. The Black Sea was the venue for the training exercise whose set target was strengthening the interoperability and the operational training in the field of elimination of explosive devices and the fight against mines. The participating structures have held specific action to discover and neutralize two historical sea mines that had been identified during some of the exercises held in 2023.

The NATO Fight group in Romania has a new commander. As part of a military ceremony held in Cincu range, Colonel Louis Marie Levacher took over the command of the eighth rotation from his comrade, colonel Benoît Chrissement. On this occasion, the area of the military camp where the French military are accommodated was named The General Berthelot Camp”, as a tribute to the French hero and a symbol of the ties France has with Romania. A commemorative plaque was also unveiled, in honor of General Henri Mathias Berthelot.

We wrap up this week’s edition of our series with the visit of a French National Defense College delegation to central Romania’s Sibiu-based Headquarters Multinational Corps Southeast. The 120 civilian and military members have been welcomed by the commander of the multinational structure, Major-General Cristian Dan. The Romanian general highlighted the importance of the cooperation between the French Armed Forces and the multinational corps. According to general Cristian Dan, that is meant to enhance the two countries’ defense capabilities, at once strengthening the unity of NATO.