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By Petty Officer 2nd Class Jacob L. Dillon Naval <strong>Special</strong> Warfare Group 2 Public Affairs Not far from the equator, in the heart of Africa, through the haze of humidity and motorcycle exhaust, down the bumpy red-clay road engulfed by palm trees school children smile and wave at a group of Sailors traveling down a road toward the shore of Lake Victoria to train with Ugandan <strong>Special</strong> Forces. A partner force of Naval <strong>Special</strong> Warfare personnel conducted a Joint Combined Exchange Training with members of a <strong>Special</strong> Forces Group from the Ugandan People’s Defense Forces May 23- July 15 in Entebbe, Uganda. “Our overall goal was to help Ugandan <strong>Special</strong> Forces enhance their operability and build and strengthen UPDF’s counter-terrorism capacity,” said an NSW instructor who participated in the JCET. “Uganda is a very strategic partner force in this region.” The NSW team said its made measurable progress in their partnership with Ugandan forces, providing the nation’s fledgling <strong>Special</strong> Forces with innovative training to improve its capabilities and build upon their foundation of tactical skills. But these U.S. special operators had to overcome challenges, such as cultural differences and language barriers, while training with their Ugandan counterparts. “Communication and patience are essential,” said an NSW instructor. “Although some Ugandans speak English and are reliable translators, we must always ask questions among ourselves [instructors] and among everybody to clearly illustrate training points and to better understand each other’s points of view.” One of the challenges was teaching Ugandan <strong>Special</strong> Forces newer and updated approaches to tactical techniques and concepts, according to Lt. Peter Olum, a UPDF officer and company commander. “We specialize in jungle warfare,” said Olum. “Much of what we are learning is brand new. Many of us have never had to use night-vision goggles before or have never been in close-quarters combat.” Naval <strong>Special</strong> Warfare team members also expanded beyond the operational aspects of the JCET to focus on other aspects of training with their partner force. Petty Officer 1st Class Joe Calderon, a <strong>Special</strong> Two members of Alpha Company, 1st <strong>Command</strong>o Battalion <strong>Special</strong> Forces Group, of the Ugandan People Defense Forces, practice a hallway and room clearing during a Joint Combined Exchange Training with an East Coast based SEAL Team July 6 in Entebbe, Uganda. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jacob L. Dillon. <strong>Operations</strong> combat medic, did his part to educate his Ugandan counterparts on field medical practices. “Along with being the corpsman for the training evolutions, I taught my own course as well,” said Calderon. “I instructed a two-day course on tactical field response; one-day classroom and one-day practical.” Calderon was also the JCET’s resident medic, and he provided classes on preventative medicine and other medical care procedures. “Preventative medicine is especially important,” said Calderon. “This region is prone to malaria and other communicable diseases, and members of this group are from areas of Uganda where other diseases are known to break out.” Naval <strong>Special</strong> Warfare team members said their Ugandan partners were extremely receptive to the training they received, and both forces look forward to training together again in the future. “We appreciate everything,” said Olum. “We learned so much and are progressively getting better; practice makes perfect. We would definitely welcome any other training opportunities we can get from these guys.” For the NSW trainers, progress was measured by clear objectives established at the beginning of the JCET, and then assessed at the end of the training. “The Ugandans’ continued motivation throughout the JCET really surprised me,” said an NSW team leader. “They were very responsive to new training and tactics; they vastly exceeded expectations. They have set the standard for other partner nations.” Tip of the Spear 5