Spanish military personnel from Force Protection take part in training in order to increase their operational and readiness capabilities

The Spanish contingent of the NATO mission Iraq (NMI) has carried out combat exercises in urban areas and live-fire drills to ensure the security of the base, the area of operations and the mission components 

A Spanish section of the Force Protection (FP) Unit of the NATO mission Iraq, known as UFP-AI XXII, has conducted an urban warfare training exercise inside a building. In addition, at the Besmaya Range Complex, they carried out joint firing exercises with Polish military personnel with the aim of improving technical and tactical capabilities, as well as enhancing mutual trust and shared knowledge among Allies.

With regard to urban combat, this training activity focused on controlling access to the building, entering rooms, clearing and securing rooms, and coordination between pairs and squads to progress safely in a urban closed environment. In this context, the exercise enabled them to strengthen the unit's operational effectiveness and tactical cohesion, improve its ability to respond to incidents in confined spaces and, finally, maintain a high level of readiness to act and fight in urban scenarios.

Furthermore, during shooting practice with their Polish counterparts, the Force Protection partners participated in advanced shooting exercises where scenarios involved incident response, convoy protection, and base security. A practical exchange of procedures was also carried out in order to promote cooperation and mutual learning among allies. This day of joint training and preparation has made it possible to strengthen interoperability, consolidate joint response capabilities and increase the cohesion of the multinational forces deployed in Iraq.

Force Protection (FP) Unit

Within the NATO Mission Iraq (NMI), the Force Protection (FP) Unit is an example of multinational capabilities cooperation and commitment: it is composed of military personnel from Spain, France, Poland and Romania. All of them act in an integrated manner to provide security for advisers, ensure the protection of facilities and support the mission's freedom of action throughout its area of operation.

Thanks to this training activities, Spain and all the nations contributing to the NMI reaffirm their commitment to reach stability in Iraq, while supporting the Iraqi Security Forces through advisory, training and capacity-building tasks, within the framework of a non-executive and non-combat mission.

Spain’s participation in Iraq

Spain takes part in the two international missions deployed in Iraq: the NATO Mission Iraq (NMI) and Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR), led by the Global Coalition against Daesh/ISIS, where Spain maintains a Special Operations Task Group (SOTG XXII).

The NATO mission in Iraq aims to contribute to the strengthening of Iraqi security forces and military education institutions by providing training and advisory capacities to Iraqi defence and security officials from the Ministry of Defence, the Office of the National Security Adviser, and Iraqi military academies and military education institutions. NMI fully integrates civilian and military personnel, with the objective of enhancing the effectiveness of NATO's efforts and maximising cooperation with other entities on this territory.