More Photos From Oregon Guard Mission in Mongolia

More images from the United Nations peacekeeping training mission in Mongolia, where Oregon National Guard soldiers are cross-training with soldiers of several states and foreign nations.

(ULAANBATAAR, Mongolia) - Oregon National Guard Soldiers have been participating in United Nations peacekeeping training over the past two weeks for Khaan Quest 2006 in Mongolia. The Oregon Guard public affairs division sent photographers along to document the training and they in turn have been sending the images to Salem-News.com.

These photos feature Soldiers from several different parts of Oregon as they train in methods used in modern warfare. The emphasis in these photographs from Oregon National Guard Specialist April Dustin show "Securing a Fixed Site" training, in which the troops practice securing a United Nations compound.

Like other present day operations, it is important in terms of history and with regard to the achievements of the Oregon National Guard which has some of the most highly rated units in the United States military.

Oregon National Guard Soldiers from B Company, 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry in Mongolia

Oregon National Guard Soldiers from B Company, 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry, Pvt. Colin Marcum, of Albany, Spc. Josh Hudson, of Happy Valley, and their fellow Soldiers in Second Platoon simulate reacting to protestors outside a simulated United Nations compound during Secure Fixed Site training August 19th, at Five Hills Training Center, near Ulaanbataar, Mongolia for Khaan Quest 2006, UN peacekeeping training.
Photo by Spc. April L. Dustin, Oregon National Guard Public Affairs

Oregon National Guard Soldiers from B Company, 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry Pvt. 1st Class Matthew Weaver (left), of Albany, and Spc. Adam Alvarez (right), of Albany, stand watch inside an observation tower overlooking a simulated United Nations compound during Secure Fixed Site training August 19th, at Five Hills Training Center, near Ulaanbataar, Mongolia for Khaan Quest 2006, UN peacekeeping training.
Photo by Spc. April L. Dustin

An Oregon National Guard Soldier from B Company, 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry, Spc. Michael Brown, of Albany, stands watch at a gate surrounding a simulated United Nations compound during Secure Fixed Site training August 19, at Five Hills Training Center, near Ulaanbataar,Mongolia for Khaan Quest 2006, UN peacekeeping training.
Photo by Spc. April L. Dustin

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Ryan of Portland September 13, 2006 1:45 pm (Pacific time)

Eric, for you to think you know more than Mongolia's leaders speaks volumes about you. You are in the Peace Corps, but you mock the relations between your country and Mongolia. Those Jarheads you have no problem making fun of, give you your freedom, but that's a whole different conversation. Here is my question to you Eric, as a person in the Peace Corps, what do you have against two nations "passing the peace pipe"? You are looking at an article and photos of a peaceful exchange between five countries, and all you can do is tear it down. In my opinion, you give your organization (PC) a bad name.

eric September 12, 2006 1:03 pm (Pacific time)

dear ryan - yes, as a matter of fact i DO know more about our military than the leaders of mongolia. i KNEW them, so i am quite confident of this fact. i suspect that enkhbayer and his buddies hope this training mission will mean continued business with the US and i suspect they are right. i'm sure a micky d's is not far behing. gotta feed the jarheads.

Ryan of Portland September 5, 2006 10:30 am (Pacific time)

Wow, now Eric knows more than the leaders of Mongolia. I would say that Eric is Americas best kept secret.

eric September 1, 2006 5:32 pm (Pacific time)

to all: I expected nothing less, so I don't take any of your comments personally. i do realize the protest was staged. my sarcasm was perhaps not well explained. i also am fully aware that Mongolia invited the peacekeeping training mission and that in this case our soldiers did not arrive uninvited. Let's just say that I am disappointed to see any US soldiers training under auspices of any organization our leaders so easily discount and subvert. and mongolia is much better off without our military assistance regardless of what the leaders who invited us think.

Dean September 1, 2006 9:32 am (Pacific time)

First of all I want to commend Specialist Dustin along with all the other Oregon, and US soldiers that participated in this exercise. Don't pay attention to Eric's ignorance, he does NOT speak for the majority of us who appriciate all the sacrifices you, and your peers do for us. I am disgusted that you defend the rights of people like him, so that he can tell you how ashamed he is to be associated with you.

Spc. April Dustin August 31, 2006 7:49 pm (Pacific time)

I am the photographer that took these photos in Mongolia. I've been reading your comments. I should have been more specific with my photo captions, sorry for any confusion. The Mongolians pictured above are "pretending" to protest while the soldiers are being tested by the United Nations Training Assistance Team on how they react to the simulated "villagers". The "villagers" were being played by soldiers, from the Mongolian Armed Forces' 150th Peacekeeping Operations Battalion, dressed in plain clothes to provide a realistic training atmosphere. If you thought this was a real protest, then you can imagine how real it must have felt for the soldiers going through this training. Rest assured, at the end of each training day, these two opposing sides would shake hands and talk about what they learned from each other during the experience.

Anonymous August 31, 2006 3:04 pm (Pacific time)

To Eric: You should do your research before you publicly speak-out against issues you have no knowledge of. I was an Oregon National Guardsman who participated in the PEACEKEEPING training in Mongolia. Did you actually read-up on what this training was about? We were INVITED by the Mongolians (and so was Bangladesh, India, Fiji, Thailand, and Tonga) to participate in this UNITED NATIONS training exercise, SPONSORED by the Mongolian Armed Forces. The purpose of this exercise was to gain Training Recognition from the United Nations, because the UN is trying to train 75,000 peacekeepers WORLDWIDE. The training was being conducted according to UNITED NATIONS STANDARDS, and the UN was there the ENTIRE time, defining the RULES of how this training would be conducted based on UN standards for peacekeeping operations. The Mongolians you see in these pictures were Mongolian Soldiers who were acting as role-players for the training. The pictures look real, but it's just TRAINING and the weapons are loaded with blank ammunition. Perhaps you would like to see photos of the Mongolia, Bangladesh, India, Fiji, Thailand and Tonga Soldiers performing EXACTLY THE SAME TRAINING SCENARIOS WITH THEIR WEAPONS SLUNG AROUND THEIR SHOULDERS - let me know, I will email you the photos for proof. The Mongolians did an excellent job HOSTING this training exercise, and welcoming us into their beautiful country with open arms. You should be very proud of the peaceful relationships and international friendships that this TRAINING brought about between U.S. Soldiers and Soldiers from Mongolia, Bangladesh, India, Fiji, Thailand, and Tonga. Soldiers from all of these countries worked together, learned from each other, shared their cultures. We formed STRONG BONDS that will continue into the future, as we stay in email contact with our new FRIENDS from each of the countries that participated. EVERY Oregon Soldier represented Oregon AND the United States proudly in Mongolia.

Eric August 28, 2006 1:27 pm (Pacific time)

I spent 2 years in Mongolia in the Peace Corps and am disgusted to see this. Glad to know not all Mongolians are in agreement. When you carry a gun in a peaceful country you don't represent your country well at all. Even if it is for "peacekeeping" training. Funny that only .5% of UN peacekeepers are Americans (8 of which are soldiers, an additional nearly 350 are civilian police, plus a handful of observers.) So there are more OR National Guardsmen in Mongolia than all US soldiers engaged in UN Peacekeeping worldwide. As a Oregonian, I am NOT proud.

Melinda August 25, 2006 2:15 pm (Pacific time)

It's a lovely country, Mongolia.

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