New equipment and capabilities strengthen the social, community outreach, and transportation activities of the National Army of Colombia, in order to fulfill the constitutional mission and address the new challenges that have been handed to the force by the current direction of the Colombian government.
During the recent visit by the Commander General of the Armed Forces of Colombia, Major General Helder Giraldo, to the United States, where he held various meetings with senior officials of the US Army, National Guard, and US Air Force, several agreements were reached to enhance the capabilities in various aspects of the Colombian Armed Forces. Acording to different sources, Colombia expressed the need for more helicopters.
Also, within these meetings, coordination was achieved for educational assistance and technology transfer to improve capabilities in cyber defense and cybersecurity, aiming to shield the military forces from potential attacks in the cyber realm, enhance the protection of military servers, and establish a force to combat cybercrime.
On another note, considering the order given by President Gustavo Petro for the military forces to commence training in the construction and maintenance of railways, given at the end of the year 2023, an agreement was reached for such training to be provided by specialized personnel from the United States.
Regarding this, General Javier Hernández, commander of the military engineers, stated in previous interviews regarding the specific aspects and operation corridors that “at this moment we are approaching the Ministry of Transportation and the National Infrastructure Agency, we have to meet to establish what their needs are and how the National Army could work hand in hand with these two institutions to fulfill the instructions of the President of the Republic, we know that they have some important projects, for example, the Pacific Train.”
It is worth noting that the military engineers had the capacity to work on railways, which was lost in the 1960s when the Francisco José de Caldas railroad battalion operated, with headquarters in Bogotá, Bucaramanga, and Puerto BerrÃo. Now, there is a push to return to these capabilities, requiring the generation of a doctrinal component covering manuals and regulations related to railway construction. Furthermore, a specialized unit must be created, mentioning the creation of a railroad battalion that must be equipped with the necessary machinery and materials and trained for the maintenance and construction of corridors. Thus, this agreement with the United States promotes the creation of the unit, although support is also being sought from Mexico and other allied countries.
To conclude this article on the new capabilities, it should be mentioned that 17 ambulances have arrived to strengthen the military health units located in the departments of Antioquia, Arauca, Bogotá, Caquetá, Cesar, Huila, La Guajira, Magdalena, Meta, QuindÃo, Putumayo, Risaralda, Santander, Tolemaida, Tolima, and Valle del Cauca, benefiting over 200,000 users of the Military Health Subsystem.
Regarding this, an official statement informed: “The delivery of these ambulances reflects the ongoing commitment to the welfare and safety of every soldier and their families. It is important to highlight that this achievement is due to the continuous and joint work by the General Directorate of Military Health and the National Army Command, which recognize the importance of having adequate medical resources to ensure that beneficiaries receive the highest quality medical care at all times. The Health Directorate will continue to work tirelessly to further strengthen health services and improve medical response capacity in all areas.”
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