SALITRE II military exercises underway in Chile
This post is written by WOLA Intern Ursela Groat The SALITRE II Chilean air force-led joint military exercises began their fifth year this week at the Cerro Moreno Air Base in Chile. Members of the Argentinean, Brazilian, French and United States air forces will also participate in the exercises. From October 17 - November 2, the coalition forces will plan and execute operations that simulate a situation where "an international coalition, under the mandate of the United Nations, carries out combined air operations to force a country that has violated international law to respect world order," according to the Salitre II website. Over a two week period, the participating air forces will simulate multiple scenarios, as described by the 12th Air Force (Air Forces Southern) in a press release:
During one scenario, rescue personnel will secure an airfield and tend to patients as part of a unified team. This type of response is vital to ensure countries are able to respond to situations with their own military and law enforcement resources. Simulated peacekeeping operations will prepare participants to support UN-type coalition operations, such as global peacekeeping and stability missions, enforcing no-fly zones or patrolling for pirates. Non-combatant evacuation operations simulated during SALITRE II will prepare nations to support civilian authorities after earthquakes, floods or hurricanes.
The Salitre exercises, which began in 2004, are one of the few joint military exercises in Latin America in which the United States participates that are not coordinated by the United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM). Each year, SOUTHCOM sponsors joint training exercises with other Latin American countries to "increase the capabilities of both the U.S. military and our partner nation's security forces" in areas such as counterterrorism, disaster relief, peacekeeping and security preparedness. Two of the biggest exercises sponsored each year by SOUTHCOM are TRADEWINDS, a multinational maritime exercise in the Caribbean, and PANAMAX, a simulation focusing on the defense of the Panama Canal. As explained by Bloggings by Boz, border tensions between Chile and Peru and a painful history between the two countries led Peru to call for Salitre II to be canceled. Tensions between the two countries go back to the late 19th century when Chile defeated Peru and Bolivia in the War of the Pacific, but escalated recently when Peru asked the International Court of Justice to arbitrate the disputed maritime border between the states. Shortly after Chile announced this year’s exercise, the Peruvian government denounced it, with Peruvian Vice President Luis Giampietri saying that the exercises were the Chileans way of "showing their teeth." Peru has also called for the formation of a non-aggression pact as a response to counter what it calls the arms race in Latin America. Chilean President Michele Bachtlet, for her part, responded to Garcia's call for a non-aggression pact negatively, saying it was an idea of "another time." The SALITRE II exercises will continue through the end of the month.