Some top cops to give Iraqis Training
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The brigade and battalion SPTTs, led by Lt. Col. David Kennedy and Maj. Joshua Potter respectively, began their year-long deployment Oct. 3. Their first stop was Fort Carson, Colo., for skills training in areas such as weapons familiarization and qualification, combat lifesaver techniques, and reflexive firing.
Next, they will travel to Kuwait where they will be trained in other areas such as convoy live-fire procedures. Finally, they will enter Iraq, where they will be trained on the most recent tactics used by the insurgents in the area.
The Special Police Training Teams will take their newly honed knowledge and training and pass it on to the Iraqi Security Forces in order to better prepare them for contingency operations and help them to perform their jobs more effectively.
MG Kenneth W. Hunzeker, 1st ID commanding general, stressed the importance of the Special Police Training Teams’ mission and wished them “Godspeed.”
“Security in Iraq can only be achieved by helping establish confident Iraqi Security Forces that can eventually function independently of Coalition Forces,” Hunzeker said. “The mentorship, training and equipment that you will be charged with will empower the Iraqi Security Forces and provide the foundation to help Iraqis defeat the insurgency.”
Hunzeker also stated, while the SPTT’s mission will not be easy, he has the utmost confidence in their abilities to improve the credibility and capabilities of the Iraqi Security Forces.