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On New Year’s Eve, German sailors pulled guard duty 500 miles away from their families to protect KMC families.
The German sailors from the Joint Support Command, a German partnership unit of the 21st Theater Support Command, guarded the gates of Ramstein and Landstuhl.
The sailors, who hail from Gluckstadt near Hamburg, take the guard duty over the holidays in stride.
“Our married military people especially regret not being home this holiday season,” said Lt. Col. Andreas Meunier, liaison officer, Germany’s Joint Support Command. “We all know how important our mission here is and we know we cannot take a break over the holidays. There’s no question that we understand the necessity of guarding our American friends.”
The sailors also had to deal with one or two unhappy KMC Motorists.
“It takes a little getting used to,” Lieutenant Colonel Meunier said. “One or two were not too happy about being checked, but many commanders have assured us how happy they are that we are checking thoroughly and protecting them and their families.”
Lieutenant Colonel Meunier said that the German military is happy to help. “Our American friends are stationed in Afghanistan, Iraq and many other places around the world which resulted in shortages at your German installations,” Lieutenant Colonel Meunier said. “So at the beginning of 2003, our government decided to offer support to our U.S. allies by helping to guard U.S. installations.”
It is not just in Germany where German troops are engaged in the war on terror. German troops account for the second largest military presence in Afghanistan.
