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Black Sea Rotational Force arrives in Bulgaria for last leg of training

US Marine Corps News

6/29/2010
By Cpl. R. Logan Kyle, Black Sea Rotational Force

NOVO SELO TRAINING AREA, Bulgaria -- The Marines and Sailors of Headquarters and Service Company, 1st Tank Battalion, are currently training with Bulgarian soldiers at Novo Selo Training Area, Bulgaria, as part of the fourth and final peacekeeping operation training course of the Black Sea Rotational Force 2010 deployment.

Members of scout platoon have spent the past two months training with Romanian, Ukrainian and Macedonian forces at Romania’s Babadag Training Area, but left the rolling plains and farmlands of Babadag to venture to Novo Selo’s mountainous terrain for their final PKO training.

Cpl. Delshan Martinez, an assaultman with scout platoon, H and S Co., 1st Tank Bn., said he is excited to see a different part of the Black Sea region.

“It was a long convoy out here, but it’s a definite change of scenery from where we spent the past six weeks,” said Martinez, a native of Lubbock, Texas. “I’m excited about training with, teaching and learning all I can from the Bulgarians. This is our last PKO, so I’m going to make it the best.”

Many Bulgarian soldiers said they agree partnering with U.S. Marines creates a unique training environment, as well as an opportunity to learn more about how America’s force in readiness operates.

“I’ve only been in the army for a little over a year so I’m really looking forward to shooting my weapon and learning more about combat marksmanship,” said Pvt. Plamen Ianev, a soldier with the Bulgarian Army. “I also want to learn more about Marine Corps tactics so I will be able to work better with the Americans when I deploy to Afghanistan.”

Plamen will get his wish over the next two weeks, as will his fellow soldiers. The Marines have constructed an intense training schedule covering a wide variety of topics including combat marksmanship, nonlethal weapons, an introduction to the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program and convoy operations. The training will consist of a balance of classroom instruction and practical application exercises which are designed to fit as much training in as possible.

However, training isn’t the only mission the Marines will accomplish while at Novo Selo.

The Marines are also scheduled to conduct community relations events in towns near the training Area. They will refurbish a community medical center in the historic village of Zheravna, and hand out clothes, toys and furniture to children at an orphanage in nearby Medven.

The Marines and Sailors of 1st Tank Bn., have served as the core of BSRF 2010, the first Security Cooperation Marine Air-Ground Task Force to deploy to the Black Sea, Balkan and Caucasus regions with the mission of promoting regional stability, building enduring partnerships with partner nations and improving their military capabilities.

Since arriving to the region, the Marines have worked and trained alongside 12 nations in the region, and accomplished more than 40 percent of the security cooperation activities conducted by Marine Forces Europe this year.

The Marines are slated to wrap up the training with Bulgarian forces in mid-July. Many will transition to the Ukraine for additional training, while others will return to their family and friends aboard Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif.