PANO – Within the framework of the second meeting of the ADMM+ Experts’ Working Group (EWG) on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), the host country, Vietnam, had conducted an HADR exercise on August 9th. The exercise, which drew the participation of an engineering unit in coordination with a helicopter unit and local forces, was aimed to highlight the participation of Vietnamese armed forces in HADR activities. Via the exercise, the host country shared with the defence organisations of the 18 members nations of ADMM+ its skills, expertise, tactics as well as the deployment of assets and efforts in a specific situation.

The suppositional scenario for the exercise said that two villages were isolated by floods due to the recent storm and heavy rains; hundreds of local people were stuck on the tops of trees or on the roofs of their houses and they needed help. An engineering unit garrisoned nearby, local forces and an air force unit were mobilised to provide aid, build bridges and evacuate the victims from the flood-hit areas. PANO would like to introduce a number of pictures of the exercise:   

Thu Nguyen