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WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 29, 2009) - Members
of the Third Army / U.S. Army Central Public Affairs Office hosted
their public affairs counterparts from the Tajikistan and Kyrgystan
Army during an exchange between the partner nations Oct. 19-23 in
the Washington metro area.
Following the visit in Washington,
the delegation visited the Joint Warfighting Center in Suffolk,
Va., during which JWFC was participating with Third Army in Egypt
as part of Operation Bright Star, a biennial multinational training
exercise designed to improve readiness, interoperability, and
strengthen military and professional relationships between Third
Army, Egypt and several other nations.
During the exchange, the foreign
delegates visited numerous portions of the U.S. Army's public
affairs operations to include the Defense Information School and
the Army Public Affairs Center at Fort George G. Meade, Md., as
well as the Office of the Chief of Public Affairs in the Pentagon
and the Defense Media Activity center in Washington and the Joint
Public Affairs Support Element in Suffolk.
"We have grown to understand the
importance of public affairs operations in our country and the
importance of working and interacting with the local media to tell
our story," said Col. Muratbek Dzhakypov, public affairs officer
with the Kyrgyzstan Army. "This trip has helped us to understand
what we need in order to succeed in this mission. We had many
questions coming into this trip and learning how the (U.S.) Army
runs its public affairs provided excellent answers."
Maj. Amanda Azubuike, media relations
officer with Third Army PAO, said the cooperation with the partner
nation's armies has been a strong growing experience for all
parties in working toward a sustainable future.
"Exchanges like this are important to
share information and to improve interoperability between our
partner nations," said Azubuike. "It is mutually important to share
information in both directions. We can both learn from each other
and help to shape the future."
Dzhakypov spoke on behalf of the
entire group when he expressed his gratitude for the assistance
provided in helping to grow the operational capability of the
Tajikistan and Kyrgystan Army public affairs.
"We greatly appreciate everything
Third Army has done to assist us," he said. "The cooperation was
excellent and everyone learned a lot. We have a lot of information
to take back to our countries and improve on our programs.
"We also want to thank everyone for
taking the time and talking to us about the different programs used
in the American Army. We look forward to future visits and other
opportunities to work side by side in the future. The professional
respect and courtesy we received was first class."
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