Medianeira (PR) – Land Force preparedness and interoperability. These are the key words of Operation Paraná III, which runs until August 18 in the state of Paraná. Integrated and cohesive, troops from sister nations will respond to various simulated humanitarian aid situations. On Sunday afternoon (13), in the presence of the Commander of the 5th Army Division, General José Ricardo Vendramin Nunes, and the Commander of the 15th Mechanized Infantry Brigade, General Marcos Américo Vieira Pessoa, around 800 soldiers from the Brazilian Army and 13 other delegations from armies on the American continent took part in the operational readiness in the municipality of Medianeira, western Paraná.
“The operational readiness effectively marks the start of the Operation. This is when we make sure that the troops are effectively ready to begin the work that will be carried out throughout the week,” said General Américo. “It’s also a good opportunity to integrate all the armies present in our Operation,” he added.
In the midst of soldiers from the 43 organizations involved, Second Lieutenant Venâncio, from the FT 116 Mechanized Infantry Brigade, read out the history of the Conference of American Armies (CEA). “In this third edition, Operation Paraná focuses on humanitarian aid work, exploring hypothetical cases in a fictitious country in South America, using an international effort to provide aid and protection to the vulnerable population.” The chaplain of the 15th Mechanized Infantry Brigade, First Lieutenant Otávio, then blessed the troops.
According to General Vendramin, planning, coordinating and executing Operation Paraná III is an opportunity to deploy military personnel on the ground in one of the largest combined operations in South America. “The Conference of American Armies has never done an exercise of this scale before, so it’s innovative and means a vote of confidence and appreciation for the credibility that the Brazilian Army has. It’s also a sign of the respectability that the Land Force has with other armies,” emphasized the Commander.
Participation of foreigners
This is the first time that Sub-Lieutenant Jonathan Gomez, from the Paraguayan Army, has taken part in an operation like this. “We can learn what to do, in what aspects we can help each other as the neighboring countries we are, and that, if necessary, we can help,” he said.
Major Freed, from the US Army, works directly with relief and humanitarian aid situations. He hopes that the experience will be one of sharing information. “I think most of the best practices in emergency management and disaster relief are universal. So I think it will be very fluid and a successful operation,” said the American military officer.
Opening Ceremony
Operation Paraná III was officially opened on Saturday (12), at a ceremony held at the 34th Mechanized Infantry Battalion, in Foz do Iguaçu (PR). In addition to the presentation of the 14 entourages, a lecture on Humanitarian Aid was given by Colonel Porto, commander of the Operation that helped the community of São Sebastião/SP, hit by storms at the beginning of the year.
Source: Brazilian Army