Oklahoma Guard, Royal Brunei kick off exercise Pahlawan Warrior 26

TUTONG CAMP, Brunei - Oklahoma National Guard and Royal Brunei Land Force Soldiers marched together to the beat of drums during the Aug. 11 opening ceremony of Exercise Pahlawan Warrior 26, marking the start of the bilateral training exercise aimed at strengthening readiness, interoperability and the enduring relationship between the two forces.

About 130 U.S. personnel are participating in Pahlawan Warrior 26, a bi-annual U.S. Army Pacific and Royal Brunei Land Force exercise as part of Operation PATHWAYS. The Oklahoma National Guard serves as the primary U.S. training force for this year's iteration, working alongside Bruneian counterparts.

The opening ceremony at Tutong Camp near Bandar Seri Begawan brought U.S. and Royal Brunei Land Force personnel together before nearly two weeks of training focused on jungle operations, operations in built-up areas, live-fire coordination and subject-matter expert exchanges.

The opening ceremony provided an early glimpse of the cooperation and camaraderie the two forces aim to build throughout the exercise.

"The ceremony started the transition between us working together, the integration between the U.S. forces and the Royal Brunei Land Forces," said Maj. Kent Turner, U.S. Army Forces commander for Exercise Pahlawan Warrior.

The tropical environment provides Oklahoma Soldiers an opportunity to develop skills difficult to replicate at home while exchanging tactics and techniques with their Bruneian counterparts. Turner said the environment is particularly valuable for the 1-180th Cavalry's reconnaissance mission.

"We can't simulate an environment like the jungle that we're going to be training in here," Turner said. "For us, as a light reconnaissance unit, to actually go out into the jungle and observe - that's just fantastic on the tactical level."

While U.S. Soldiers bring experience in reconnaissance and security operations, Royal Brunei Land Force personnel bring extensive experience operating in the region's jungle terrain.

"For us, the training over the next 10 days will be a challenge," said Col. Michael Scanlon, deputy chief of staff for operations, Oklahoma Army National Guard. "Most of us are unfamiliar with operating in the jungle, whereas our Royal Brunei Land Force partners are among the world's most skilled. We have much to learn and are eager to do so."

That exchange extends beyond tactics and terrain, as U.S. and Bruneian soldiers learn to operate one another's equipment and better understand how their counterparts work.

"It will definitely help us in our readiness in the long term and also in the short term," Lieutenant Muhammad Syahmi, platoon leader for 2nd Platoon, A Company, 2nd Battalion, Royal Brunei Land Force. "There will be more confidence in using our equipment, and they're going to understand us more and we're going to understand them more."

Together, participating units bring a range of capabilities to the exercise while gaining experience operating alongside a partner force in a challenging environment. Throughout Pahlawan Warrior 26, U.S. and Bruneian personnel will have opportunities to share those capabilities, learn from one another and build the personal relationships that underpin effective cooperation between partner forces.

"We're going to conduct hard training, but more than anything, we want to become friends at the end of the exercise," Turner said.