People
Sikh-American Soldiers Liaise With Indians
by U.S. ARMY ALASKA
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardon, Alaska, U.S.A.
Military operations between
two nations can be challenging with the diversity of language, cultures
and traditions.
U.S. Army Alaska found an untraditional method of alleviating those
challenges when they discovered Sikh-American sisters Cpl. Balreet Kaur and
Spc. Jasleen Kaur, both medics for the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat
Team (California National Guard), who serve as cultural liaisons between the armies
of India and the United States during exercise Yudh Abhyas 2010.
The 14-day exercise started Nov 1 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson,
and serves as an opportunity to strengthen military cooperation between
the two countries.
"This brings our two countries much closer together and anytime we have
experts from the other country it brings us much further along. They
understand their customs and courtesies, so they help us out
tremendously and make sure that we do not violate any of the normal
policies that they follow," said U.S. Army Alaska Deputy Commander Col.
Mark S. Lowe, acting exercise director.
The soldiers were specifically chosen for the exercise because of their
background, knowledge and experience - providing a common ground between
the two armies. The soldiers also serve as medics and are involved in
role playing.
"Our commander knew that the Indian army and the U.S. Army were working
together and he wanted something beyond just the exercise. He wanted the
cultural aspect to mesh as well," said Jasleen.
They also speak Punjabi and Hindi, which helps with communication during the training events.
"When we speak to them in Hindi they feel a little closer to home. Their
faces light up to know that we can speak their language and that one
barrier is down," said Jasleen.
Jasleen and Balreet have provided guidance to USARAK on different
accommodations that were necessary for the Indian soldiers to feel more
comfortable in an unfamiliar environment.
"In India, we shower with buckets that we fill with tap water and we use
a mug to scoop the water out, so they wanted to make sure that the
Indian soldiers in the field had the right mugs," said Balreet.
"They really have given 110 percent here. They have even offered Indian meals at the chow hall," added Jasleen.
Initially, they were nervous about how the Indian Army would respond to
them and were surprised with the attention they received.
"We are [Sikhs originally from India] representing the United States so I think that they feel
more comfortable coming up to us because they can relate to us more and
ask us questions about America," added Balreet.
The sisters and their family left India in 2001 because of religious
conflict in India and they haven't returned since, so the
experience during the exercise has been refreshing and educational for
them, they said.
"With this experience, we actually get to learn more about where we came
from and we get to learn about the Indian military. It's been discussed
many times how key this exercise is with the Indian army and the U.S.
Army, so for us to be a part of that and to be exposed to this sort of
setting is beneficial to us and, of course, to both parties," said
Balreet.
They have already learned many differences with rank structure,
equipment and combat operations from conversations with the Indian
soldiers, said Jasleen.
"Everyone knows those two young soldiers and they've been very helpful
at the senior-officer level, the NCO-level and the soldier-level, so
they have established great rapport with the Indian Army. If anything,
it will bring our countries much closer," said Lowe.
Yudh Abhyas is a regularly-scheduled bilateral, conventional-forces
training exercise, sponsored by U.S. Army, Pacific and the Indian Army.
The exercise is designed to promote cooperation between the two
militaries to develop U.S. Army Pacific and USARAK relationships with
India and promote interoperability through combined Military Decision
Making Process, battle tracking and maneuvering forces, and exchange of
tactics, techniques and procedures.
During the exercise, U.S. soldiers and their Indian counterparts will
conduct a Command Post Exercise, airborne operations training,
marksmanship and tactical training and take part in cultural exchanges
to improve partnership readiness and cooperation between the armies of
India and the United States.
[Edited for sikhchic.com]
November 5, 2010