On November 16 eleven members of the Redeployable Communications and Information Systems Module (RCISM) of the Gediminas Headquarters Battalion returned from a month-long training in the NATO Response Force exercise Steadfast Juncture 2012 in Amari Air Base, Estonia. In the exercise the RCISM military personnel were in charge of providing communications and information systems support.
Preparation for the exercise was carried out in June in Germany via Steadfast Cobalt exercise where communications and information systems capacity and compatibility were tested. Lithuania delegated 8 servicemembers of the RCISM to Steadfast Cobalt.
Steadfast Juncture 2012 was conducted in two phases. In the first phase communications networks were set up, general communications and information systems capacity and reliability of information systems was tested. The RCISM personnel deployed satellite communications terminal, installed cable communications, readied computer networks for work and installed the necessary software into service stations. Approximately 400 work places for the training audience were supplied. During the second phase of the exercise a task was completed to ensure communications and information systems support to the NATO Response Force (NRF) Headquarters.
The overarching objective of Steadfast Juncture 2012 was to evaluate and certify the capacity of the NRF command to provide C2 functions for a multilateral force during the standby period of 2013.
Troops of the Headquarters Battalion's RCISM were dispersed across multinational teams according to the type of the tasks exercised and completed such tasks in the satellite communications, computer networks, information systems administrators, and other teams. During the exercise Lithuanian troops enhanced their professional skills in operating communications and information systems equipment used for supporting NATO's C2 processes as well as completed their direct tasks in composition of the 3rd NATO Communications Battalion, the superior Battalion for the RCISM and five more identical company-sized units of other NATO states according to operational subordination.
"Such exercises provide servicemembers of the Battalion with critical experience of working in a multinational environment," said Lt Col Gintaras Jurčiukonis, Commander of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas Headquarters Battalion. "I am sure that our military personnel will contribute their new experience to the training of communications and information systems personnel and will use it for the best completion of tasks in Lithuania."
Steadfast Juncture 2012 has been the major exercise held this year that has summarised the entire RCISM warfare training and task completion period in 2012.
This has been the second deployment of the RCISM military personnel to an exercise of such scope. In 2011 a similar training event was held in Lithuania, Pabradės Training Area.
The Redeployable Communications and Information Systems Module (RCISM) of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas Headquarters Battalion renders support of command and control (C2) process through communications and information systems to NATO's temporary-redeployable commands.
The key task of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas Headquarters Battalion is maintaining readiness for ensuring the functions of strategic-level headquarters. The Battalion's military personnel also represent the Lithuanian Armed Forces and the Republic of Lithuania in formal events.
