Haven't heard of Poland's Special Forces? They're real, they're serious, and they're here to save the day.
by Victorino Matus
05/08/2003 2:40:00 PM
IT CAME AS A SURPRISE to many when the U.S. postwar plans for Iraq were finally revealed. Like Gaul, Iraq would be divided into three parts: an American zone, a British zone, and a Polish zone. But what role did Poland play during the war? It turns out a very important one--albeit one that was kept mostly secret.
One of the primary objectives during the early stages of Operation Iraqi Freedom was the port at Umm Qasr. Without it, delivering adequate humanitarian aid to the rest of Iraq would have been nearly impossible for the coalition. Not long after the start of the war, the port was secured--in large part thanks to GROM, Poland's elite commandos.
Who even knew Poland had special forces? For a while, not many. The Polish government waited three years before publicly disclosing GROM's existence. Standing for Grupa Reagowania Operacyjno Mobilnego (Operational Mobile Response Group), the name actually stems from a special-forces commander, Gromoslaw Czempinski, who, during the first Gulf War, led a Polish unit into Western Iraq to rescue a group of CIA operatives. One of the other men on that secret mission was Slawomir Petelicki--the father of GROM.
"GROM was my idea," General Petelicki says in his husky, accented voice. "I presented it to the new democratic government" in 1991 "and because I liked to give honor to the commander of my unit, I named it after Gromoslaw." (Grom also means thunder in Polish.) Petelicki, now retired from the military, spoke from Warsaw where he is now an independent consultant for, among others, Ernst & Young. It's quite a change of pace for a man once described in Jane's Intelligence Review as "his country's James Bond and Rambo wrapped neatly into one daunting package." (Petelicki also serves as chairman of the Special Forces Foundation. "I try to help former commandos and discourage them from going into organized crime--where there are many lucrative offers for work.")
Petelicki tried selling his idea of an elite Polish commando group much earlier, "but those Russians didn't like to have real special forces operating in Poland--they feared we could start training in guerrilla warfare against them." But the need did arise in 1990, following Operation Bridge, in which Poland helped Soviet Jews enter Israel. Intelligence reports indicated that Hezbollah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine were planning reprisals inside the Polish border. Then-Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki recognized the threat and approved of Petelicki's plan for a new counter-terror force.
"I had a lot of candidates at first" says the general. "That first team I assembled from people I knew well. They were all in their 30s. Now the age of recruits is about 26." According to Jane's Intelligence Review, "GROM candidates were first subjected to a grueling psychological examination meant to search for confident and innovative soldiers as well as those who, though they might be lacking in physical strength, possessed the rare gift of internal iron will." The candidates then undergo back-breaking training deep in the Carpathian Mountains.
Only 1 to 5 percent of these candidates actually get into GROM. But once they are in, the real training begins: GROM operators practice "killing house" entries (with commanders often serving as hostages), storm hijacked commercial airliners complete with mannequin terrorists and bullet traps, and lead raids onto ships and offshore platforms. All of this is done with live ammunition. The commandos are trained in paramedics and demolitions and many are SCUBA experts. They mostly work in four to six-man assault teams except for the snipers who are separate because, as Petelicki explains, "that is a job for special people and they are very hard to replace."
Radek Sikorski, Poland's former deputy minister of defense and now executive director of the New Atlantic Initiative, recently told me he witnessed the snipers at their best during a training exercise in 1999. "The GROM operators were working alongside the Delta Force and were tasked with rescuing the chairman of the National Bank of Poland. He was being held hostage by terrorists in possession of a nuclear device." Sikorski says the snipers waited for days in complete disguise. "They just followed the terrorists' routines and then started to pick them off one by one." GROM operators are said to be martial arts experts and capable of "cold killing." "We created our own style of martial arts," says Petelicki. "I have an old friend who is a master of karate and jujitsu and is a sixth degree black belt. He created the style with other specialists--it is most similar to what the Israelis do."
And what about "cold killing"? Asked if the ominous term refers to garrotes or piano wire, Petelicki replies "Yes." Pausing to choose his words carefully, he explains, "Many things. For instance, we can create a weapon from . . . well . . . many things." The weapon used most by GROM is the MP5 submachine gun. They also get to choose their own sidearm--most choose either the Glock Model 19 or the SIG-Sauer P228.
PETELICKI says that GROM is a mixture of the Delta Force, SAS, and the Navy SEALs. "We took what we found best from each group." (GROM trainers have been to Fort Bragg as well as Hereford--home of the SAS.)
For the past twelve years, GROM operators have engaged in numerous operations, including peacekeeping in the Balkans and Haiti. In 1997, they successfully captured Slavko Dokmanovic, aka, "the Butcher of Vukovar" who was held responsible for the murder of 260 Croats. Despite being well-protected by Serb commandos, Dokmanovic was successfully captured alive (his bodyguards didn't fare so well).
So what was the significance in having 56 commandos from the 300-member GROM take part in Operation Iraqi Freedom? "This war saved GROM," says Petelicki. "Without it, it would have been broken up between the army and navy. But now everyone knows about GROM in Poland and they are proud of them."
Radek Sikorski observes that "It was wise for the United States to show countries who backed it in this war that they are appreciated. This will probably pave the way for more 'coalitions of the willing.' Poland took a lot of risks supporting America. It also took a beating from some of its European friends." Sikorski thinks this could be the beginning of a special relationship with the United States, akin to the one shared by Great Britain, but warns "it is still in the very early stages and much will also depend on America's staying power in the region, its willingness to remain interested in Central Europe. One thing the Americans could do is move their bases out of Germany and into Poland, which has less population density and greater space to conduct exercises."
Since GROM's creation 12 years ago, only 4 commandos have been killed in operations. I asked General Petelicki if, during those years, there is one mission that stands out. "Although 70 percent of our operations are still top secret, the one operation I liked best was this last one at Umm Qasr. That was definitely my favorite. [He sighs.] I was jealous I could not be there instead of Colonel Polko [the current commander of GROM]. Umm Qasr was a very risky operation--a lot of explosives were used--but there were no casualties for us." He adds, "I liked it because we were able to help our friends, the Americans, who helped us create GROM. It was a real masterpiece."
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/002/653hsdpu.asp?pg=2
GROM
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Official force name: Wojskowa Formacja Specjalna GROM im. Cichociemnych Spadochroniarzy Armii Krajowej
Other names: GROM, Grupa Reagowania Operacyjno-Manewrowego, Polish Army GROM Force
Branch: Polish Army
Chain of Command: Directly subordinate to Polish Ministry of Defence
Description: Special Operations Force, rapidly deployable light infantry force.
Readiness: Unknown
Specialisations: Conducting conventional or special Light-Infantry operations, conducting direct action operations, conducting raids, infiltrating and exfiltrating by sea, air or land, recovery of personnel and special equipment, protection of civilians, protection of VIP, Counter-Terrorist strikes, Anti-Terrorist strikes, reconnaissance, peace-keeping and peace-restoring operations.
Headquarters: Warsaw, Poland
Motto: Polonia semper viteris
Structure: Unknown, probably approx. 270 to 300 men and women organised in squads of 4.
Equipment:
Garment: Pro-Tec helmets nomex suits, bullet proof vests
Pistols: Browning HP H&K P-8 USP SIG-Sauer Glock
Machine pistols: modified H&K MP5
Sniper rifles: Remington Mauser 86 7,62 mm H&K PSG-1
Shotguns: Remington Wingmaster
Artillery: MZP-1 grenade launcher
Insertion date: July 13, 1990
Reason for creation: Poland's participation in NATO and UN operations.
GROM (Polish: Grupa Reagowania Operacyjno-Manewrowego—Operational Mobile Reaction Group; the acronym itself means thunder) is a Special Forces unit of the Polish Army. It was formed on July 13, 1990. It is used in a variety of special operations including Anti-Terrorist actions and projection of power on the rear of enemy lines.
The full name in Polish is Wojskowa Formacja Specjalna GROM im. Cichociemnych Spadochroniarzy Armii Krajowej (Special Military Formation GROM of the Cichociemni of Armia Krajowa), though it is rarely used. The acronym GROM is also related to the name of general Gromos³aw Czempinski, who among other actions, managed to evacuate a number of American agents from Iraq shortly before Operation Desert Storm. In Polish Army nomenclature it is called JW 2305 (JW stands for Jednostka Wojskowa—Military Unit).
History
Early history
In the 1970s and 1980s there were several Special Forces formations, but were either trained in typically military tasks (sabotage, disruption of communications and such) or in Anti-Terrorist actions. After the Polish embassy in Bern was captured by terrorists in 1982, General Edwin Roz³ubirski proposed that a military unit specialising in fast response to all possible threats, be created. However, the proposal was initially refused.
In 1989 many Jews were allowed to leave the Soviet Union for Israel. For fear of Islamic terrorists who opposed increased immigration to Israel, most western European countries did not assist in the transport of civilians. Poland was one of the handful of countries to provide aid in the organisation of this operation, later nicknamed Operation Most. After two Polish diplomats were shot in Beirut, Lt. Col. S³awomir Petelicki was sent to Lebanon to secure the transfer of civilians and the Polish diplomatic outposts.
After his return to Poland, he presented a plan for the creation of a special military force to the Ministry of Defence; a force that would be trained in defending Polish citizens in similar situations. The idea was accepted and on July 13, 1990, the JW 2305 unit was created.
Commanders
Brigadier General S³awomir Petelicki (July 13, 1990–December 19, 1995)
Brigadier General Marian Sowinski (December 19, 1995–December 6, 1997)
Brigadier General S³awomir Petelicki (December 7, 1997–September 17, 1999)
Colonel Zdzis³aw Zurawski (September 17, 1999–May 26, 2000)
Colonel Roman Polko (May 26, 2000–February 11, 2004)
Colonel Tadeusz Sapierzynski (February 11, 2004– February 23, 2006)
Brigadier General Roman Polko (February 23, 2006–)
Organisation
S³awomir Petelicki was chosen as the first commander of the newly-formed unit. As an officer specialising in reconnaissance, sabotage and diversion, he seemed perfectly suited for creation of such a formation. He gathered around himself a group of professional officers and set about choosing soldiers that would be fit for special operations. Due to the risks involved in special service, it was decided that all men should be professional soldiers.
The first group of recruits came from a variety of already-existent special units. Among others these were:
1st Independent Special Battalion from Lubliniec (1. Samodzielny Batalion Specjalny)
Special units of various divisions
6th Aeromobile Brigade (6. Brygada Desantowo-Szturmowa)
Polish Navy divers
Anti-terrorist units of the police
Mechanised Warfare School in Wroc³aw
Reconnaissance units of various divisions
Out of the possible recruits, only a small group passed the training based on SAS experiences and the psychological tests. Many of the instructors were trained by the Special Forces of the United Kingdom and the USA. Currently GROM is co-operating with the most similar units of NATO:
Special Air Service
Special Boat Service
Green Berets
Delta Force
GSG-9
Navy Seals
BBE
For the first several years the unit remained completely secret. It was first reported to the press in 1992 and became known to the public in 1994, after their first major military operation in Haiti.
Before 1 October 1999, GROM was subordinate to the Polish Ministry of Interior, after which command was transferred to the military.
Training
Candidates applying to serve in the GROM have to pass psychological and durability tests and the so called truth test; a physically and psychologically exhausting field test designed to filter out the weakest applicants. GROM soldiers train with the best special forces units in the world. As specialists, they are ranked with the likes of Delta Force or the SAS.
The training of GROM soldiers includes a variety of disciplines. All of them undergo specialised training in Anti-Terrorism and Special Operations, as well as scuba diving, sniping and parachuting. In four-man teams, each soldier must be prepared to assume the respective responsibilities of his colleagues, should it become necessary. Approximately 75% of the soldiers are trained as medics or paramedics. In addition, each group is supported by several professional physicians. It is assumed that all GROM operators are proficient in at least two foreign languages.
Unlike Special Forces subordinate to the police, GROM is trained primarily in the elimination of terrorists rather than capture.
Known operations
Autumn 1994 - Restoration of Democracy in Haiti - 55 GROM soldiers, together with the 3rd Special Forces Group
Search for war criminals in former Yugoslavia
June 1995 - extraction of Polish officers captured by Serbs in Bosnia
October 2001 - War in Afghanistan
March 2003 - Operation Iraqi Freedom
Since 2003 - Occupation of Iraq
GROM was used extensively in Iraq. They probably still are.
Great pics.
And God bless 'em, GROM is heroic.
Thanks for the great thread Lizol.
As a German it is always amazing to me when other nations and their citizens are celebrating their millitary. In my country we have a quite cool relationship to our forces although we have also some skilled elite units like the KSK or the GSG9. We see them simply as a expensive necessity for our defense but we are for sure not proud of them. In fact we want them to sit on the fence since it is more convenient to delegate "jobs" abroad to those who are "gung ho" to do it. Most of those "jobs" are anyway none of our own business. Since Germany had to deal with its dirty SS-history, members in a elite unit are not "sexy" anymore to most of my compatriots. Spechialized forces are mainly needed in "out-of-area" missions. This is anyway something that most of the German public is refusing. Since WWII the vast majority of my compatriots want to have the missions of German millitary being restricted to our own territory for close defense.
Of course these feelings do not meet the reality. Anyway - in difference to Poland German politicians are kept to limit the use of our forces to the absolute exigence. Personally I think this should change since it would be helpful if Germany bring itself into some international processes - with millitary force side by side with your soldiers and others.
Therefore - Congratulations to your freedom fighters.