NEWS FROM THE FRONT

French Participation in JWA: 

How to Prepare Our Future Together

Colonel Pierre-Olivier Marchand 

French Army Liaison Officer, U.S. Army Combined Arms Center

Lieutenant-colonel Antoine de Malartic 

French Army Liaison Officer, Headquarters, Department of the Army 

Lieutenant-colonel Nicolas Konieczny

French Army Liaison Officer, Fires CoE and Joint Modernization Command 

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News from the Front:

French Participation in JWA: How to Prepare Our Future Together

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French Participation in JWA: 

How to Prepare Our Future Together 

An enduring commitment to Joint Warfighting Assessment (JWA), the most 

appropriate platform to evaluate and assess interoperability 

The French Army participation in the JWA series started in 2018 with the commitment of 

the 7th Armored Brigade, commanded by BG Palu, under the 1st Infantry Division (ID) at 

Grafenwoehr, Germany. Although it was the first time, the environment of the exercise 

and the good preparation of the French teams enabled the interactions between the U.S. 

and French headquarters up to the integrated level in some specific areas, including 

Command Information Systems (CIS) and digital fires. 

Therefore, France decided to plan a long-term commitment to these exercises in order 

to develop and increase interoperability with the U.S. This was consistent with the 

Strategic Vision Statement which the Chef d'État-Major de l'Armée de Terre (equivalent 

to the U.S. Chief of Staff of the Army) and the U.S. Chief of Staff of the Army signed in 

2015, with the objective of integrating units at the brigade and at the division level. In 

2020, the 4th Airmobile Brigade will take over the French position under the 1st Cavalry 

Division in DEFENDER 20 command post exercise. 

In order to sustain the achievements gained in 2018, the French Army staff headquarters 

(HQ) identified the requirement to be involved in JWA19, not with a brigade HQ 

(deployment tempo and location of the exercise were not appropriate) but with a 

detachment of 18 officers, seven of them being currently positioned as liaison officers to 

the U.S. Army. 

Involvement of the French Officers in Key Areas Within the Training Audience and 

the Exercise Control (EXCON) 

The French approach in this exercise was to reinforce the 7th Infantry Division in specific 

positions. The purpose was to promote human and procedural interoperability and to 

develop the exchange of information thanks to the commitment of nine French officers 

embedded in key warfighting functions: the deputy G2 and two staff officers were French, 

as well as the Joint Air Ground Integration Center (JAGIC) Chief, and G3 Aviation, G4, 

G5, Coalition Network Operation Security Center (CNOSC) and common operating 

picture shop staff officers. 

The secondary objective was to reinforce the Joint Multinational Interoperability (JMNI) 

Assessment Team, mainly composed of U.S., Britain, Canada, Australia, and New 

Zealand (ABCANZ) officers and civilians, by providing a non-ABCANZ approach more 

focused on U.S.-FR and NATO. Three French officers and one U.S. officer, currently 

As part of the strategic bilateral objectives with the U.S. Army’s Strategic Vision 

Statement, the French Army’s vision is to conduct a lasting and long-term 

commitment to JWA, because it considers this exercise as a key event for 

improving interoperability at the brigade level, as well as testing new concepts.
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posted in France in the Combat Command Regiment (CCR)-FR, were part of the team 

and were tasked to support the assessment of headquarters, Department of the Army’s 

(HQDA) priority focused areas, namely: communication and information systemsinformation management/knowledge management, intelligence, fires, and sustainment, 

which form the four lines of effort of the main allies’ bilateral roadmap.

In order to prepare the future exercises in 2020 (JWA) and 2021 (Warfighting Exercise 

[WFX] 21-41), France decided to deploy five observers, representing French Army HQ, 

French Land Forces Command, 3rd (FR) Division, and 4th (FR) Airmobile Brigade. 

The whole detachment was under the supervision of an Army Colonel, French Senior 

National Representative for the exercise. 

This three-fold organization proved efficient and enabled a perfect interaction and 

understanding at every echelon (brigade, division, EXCON, and assessment): 

- It provided the French liaison officers with a deeper perspective of how U.S. corps

and divisions are organized and are conducting operations in a multi-domain

environment.

- The level of knowledge acquired by the French liaison officers on their forts within

the U.S. Army enabled them to be fully human and procedural-compatible with

their U.S. peers. They proved to be high value prior to and during the exercise for

the 7th ID staff.

- The French multi-disciplinary approach to assess interoperability was a great

opportunity for the JMNI assessment team to get additional observations in all the

domains from a non-ABCANZ partner. This approach also allowed the French

Army to get an “interoperability snapshot” before the 4th Airmobile Brigade

commitment in JWA20.

- The French individuals were able to contribute to the development of new tactics,

techniques, and procedures regarding the applicability of multi-domain operations

at the tactical and operational levels.

This commitment was made possible thanks to the excellent interaction between Joint 

Modernization Command (JMC, Fort Bliss) and the French liaison officer in Fort Sill, who 

is also the “non-resident liaison officer” to JMC and was the officer in charge for the 

exercise. It highlighted that the first and main condition of interoperability is of human 

essence. 

The French Army commitment with its liaison officers to the U.S. Army was an 

overall success and paved the way to a long-term participation of this French 

liaison team in the United States to the series of Joint Warfighting Assessments.
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Preparing the Future: Main Lessons Identified and the Way Ahead 

Relying on the comments and observations made during the exercise and in order to 

prepare JWA20, the French Army identified four main lessons learned: 

- The Division’s procedures (task organization, battle rhythm, standard operating

procedures [SOPs], etc.) might be decided (by NATO, ABCANZ, or U.S.) and

delivered to the brigade level as soon as possible.

- The digital connections (technical and classification issues) are required to be

established and tested prior to the exercise through risk reduction events for all the

functional areas and needs to be maintained during the whole exercise.

- The multinational brigade’s capabilities have to be well known by the division in order

to be efficient and to multiply the effectors for the coalition. This point will be even

more relevant in JWA20 because the French brigade will have huge airmobile

capabilities.

- The profile of the brigade liaison officers attached to the division is very important. Not

only does he have to master the language and the military acronyms (for the French

Army it is crucial because we are not native speakers) but also he has to advise the

division staff on how his brigade is working, planning, and reacting. Therefore, the

recommended approach is to select one of the best and most experienced officers to

get his support as well as the well-endorsed capability to take decisions in case of

technical communication deficiencies between the brigade and the division.

In the perspective of the future exercises, the French Army has also considered two main 

points raised by U.S. Army LTG Volesky, I Corps Commander: (1) the requirement to 

better protect the forces (force protection; air defense; chemical, biological, radiological, 

and nuclear defense [CBRN]; and counter-unmanned aerial surveillance [C-UAS]) and

(2) to integrate the multinational partners in key U.S. structures, like the Multinational

Intelligence Fusion Cell, the Multi-Domain Task Force or the Theater Fires Command.

Indeed, these commitments will create a closer loop to get access to multinational

capabilities and authorities and will provide the Joint Force Commander with additional

flexibility and firepower.

In 2020, the French Airmobile Brigade (4 BAC) will participate in exercise JWA20 

under the 1st (U.S.) Cavalry Division. The role of the liaison elements will be key to 

facilitate the mutual understanding between the units.

JWA19 was a great achievement for the French Army in order to sustain and, in 

some areas, improve the interoperability with the U.S. Army. The multi-domain 

environment of the exercise has triggered challenges and issues that have been 

identified and fixed by a coalition in a two-week exercise, showing the potential of 

combining skills not only at the joint, but also at the multinational level. This proved 

to be an excellent preparation for the commitment of the 4th Airmobile Brigade 

which will evolve in the same kind of environment in a European theater.