NATO
Allied Joint Force Command Naples
April 19, 2022

NATO Joint Force Commander Visits Cincu, Romania Training Area

Admiral Robert P. Burke, Commander Allied Joint Force Command Naples, visited Romania to meet with NATO Commanders and observe NATO forces at the Cincu Training Area, 19 April 2022.

The visit included exchanges with commanders from the Multi-national Division Southeast, Multi-national Corps Southeast, leaders of the Romanian Joint Force Command and NATO Force Integration Unit as well as supporting NATO commanders.

Admiral Burke expressed his appreciation of the Cincu training area, a well-known location to NATO forces under his command. In May 2021, Burke led 4000 troops from 12 Allied nations as they conducted weeks of combined arms training at Cincu during Exercise Steadfast Defender 2021.

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NATO has enhanced its presence in the eastern part of the Alliance, with eight multinational battlegroups from the Baltic to the Black Sea. These battlegroups represent the biggest reinforcement of NATO’s collective defence in a generation.

“I am very impressed with how quickly and professionally the Romanian Armed Forces have mobilized to defend this nation and support NATO’s activation of all five Graduated Response Plans. I am also impressed with the deployment of NATO Response Force elements and the French, Belgian, Polish, Portuguese and U.S. units converging here to support the defence of NATO’s eastern flank,” said Admiral Burke.

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Admiral Burke is the commander of NATO’s Joint Task Force South and East, responsible for the strengthening NATO’s eastern flank and the further integration of national defence plans with the broader defence of the NATO Alliance in the Black Sea Region.

As Commander, Allied Joint Force Headquarters in Naples, Italy, Burke directs a combined staff, representing NATO’s 30 Allies, responsible for planning, preparing, and conducting military operations throughout the Supreme Allied Commander Europe’s area of responsibility. The command oversees three efforts across the Western Balkans: the Kosovo Force, NATO Headquarters Sarajevo, and the NATO Military Liaison Office in Belgrade. The command is also responsible for NATO’s mission in Iraq.