Members from the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), in continued support to U.S. European Command (EUCOM), and the Government of Kosovo conducted a Capstone Counter Weapons of Mass Destruction (CWMD) Training Event to train and equip Kosovo Security Forces (KSF) personnel to effectively respond to Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) incidents.

Through DTRA’s Building Partner Capacity activities, the Capstone Skills Training event was the culmination of long-standing partnership with the KSF HAZMAT Company to develop CWMD capabilities to prepare, identify, respond, and mitigate CBRN incidents and enhance the response to all Weapon of Mass Destruction (WMD) incidents.

Over 35 participants from the HAZMAT Company successfully navigated six scenarios across 4 days. The realistic CBRN threats in the training scenarios tested all skillsets required to conduct CWMD operations with each scenario progressing in difficulty and aimed at creating a training environment that is more dynamic and more complex than the last to activate response and generate interoperability across the forces.

The DTRA led event was supported by the Iowa National Guard through the State Partnership Program (SPP), where members of the Iowa National Guard’s 71st Civil Support Team (CST). This collaboration increases readiness and capabilities of the HAZMAT Company and improves interoperability with the U.S. and other partners, as well as provided additional resources for regional security.

As the Counter WMD Implementer for the Department of Defense, DTRA aligns BPC activities to support regional requirements identified by the Geographic Combatant Command, building strong relationships with our partners and allies to enable Joint Forces to compete and win against WMD threats.