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US Maj. Gen. Vern T. Miyagi, center, during the opening ceremony of a joint UN exercise, inspecting a CornerShot weapon designed for special forces. (Photo: Tatan Syuflana, AP)

Garuda Shield to Sharpen UN Cooperation

Bandung. The Armed Forces began joint exercises with 21 other nations on Tuesday in an effort to increase cooperation in United Nations missions and to foster stability in the Asia-Pacific.

Gen. Djoko Santoso, chief of the Armed Forces, officially launched the exercise, code-named Garuda Shield 2009, at the Army’s Infantry Education Center in Cipatat in West Java on Tuesday.

The exercise, sponsored by the US Pacific Command, is the third such operation to be held in Asia. The first exercise was organized in Mongolia under the code name Khan Quest in 2007, and the second, called Santi Dhoot, took place in Bangladesh in 2008.

Military officials said Garuda Shield would incorporate two stages, including a command post operation this week, and a mock field mission next week from June 22-29. Nine countries are slated to take part in the first phase, while an additional 12 nations would participate in the field exercise.

The United States, Japan, Australia, South Korea, France, Germany, Italy, Singapore, Thailand and several other Asian countries, including Malaysia, are taking part in the exercise.

The event is aimed at increasing solidarity among soldiers from countries contributing troops to UN missions.

Djoko said the exercise aimed to improve cooperation among participating forces in light of complex geopolitical developments such as the global financial crisis and the swine flu pandemic, as well as ongoing threats from terrorism, transnational crimes, and border conflicts.

“Those issues force us to establish cooperation in dealing with the issues to create regional security, particularly in Asia and the Pacific,” he said. Meanwhile, US Pacific Command representative Maj. Gen. Miyagi thanked the Indonesian government for hosting the joint military exercise for UN peacekeeping troops.

Under the UN’s international banner, Indonesia has deployed personnel to conflict zones throughout the world, including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Egypt, Georgia, Iraq, Kuwait, Mozambique, the Philippines and Somalia.

Indonesian’s peacekeeping forces are under deployment in Lebanon and Congo.

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