An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | March 28, 2023

New York Army Guard Officer Candidates to Train in Albania

By Eric Durr, New York National Guard

CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, N.Y. - Five New York Army National Guard officer candidates are heading to Albania in April to train with their counterparts from the Albanian Land Force and the New Jersey Army National Guard.

The New York officer candidates and six instructors from New York’s 106th Regional Training Institute are participating in the unique overseas training deployment, thanks to New Jersey’s 254th Regional Training Institute.

The April 10-24 event is part of the New Jersey National Guard’s State Partnership Program relationship with the Balkan nation.

It’s a great opportunity for his officer candidates to accomplish their required training while also learning to work with Guardsmen from another state and Soldiers from a NATO ally, said Lt. Col. Aaron Lefton, the commander of the 106th’s second battalion.

Lefton said this could also provide a model for the New York National Guard to develop similar training opportunities with its State Partnership Program countries, Brazil and South Africa.

“We are fortunate to be piggybacking on this with New Jersey,“ Lefton said.

Officer candidate Katherine Murrell, 30, who enlisted directly into New York officer candidate school, said she was looking forward to the trip.

“I know it is going to be a challenge to be out in the field for the entire time, but I think it will be a great experience,” she said.

Officer candidate Jason Frantz, 37, a specialist in the 152nd Engineer Support Company, said he had visited many places in the western Pacific while in the Navy and was looking forward to seeing a new country.

The New York Soldiers are coming along for the third phase of a five-year effort to help the Albanian army develop a military academy-style officer training program, according to Lt. Col. Stuart Loy, the commander of the 1st Battalion, 254th Training Regiment.

The New Jersey National Guard has had a State Partnership Program relationship with Albania since 1993. The Albanian military has turned to the New Jersey Guard to help modernize, and the officer education project is part of that effort, Loy explained.

When the Albanian Armed Forces decided to create a military academy officer commissioning system, the leaders reached out to the New Jersey National Guard and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point for help, Loy said.

Two years ago, he spent 90 days in Albania as a subject matter expert to assist with their training and help decide how to proceed, Loy said. The New Jersey Guard and Albanian leaders devised a plan to change Albanian’s officer training process.

The first phase took place in 2022 when New Jersey officer candidates traveled to Albania for joint training with their Albanian counterparts, Loy said.

“The integration of our officer candidates and their officer candidates working together was a huge success,” Loy said. The goal, he said, was to demonstrate western military leadership style with hands-on examples.

While the Albanians, as NATO allies, had learned some basic English, it was good practice for the Americans to work out the communications difficulties, Loy said.

“We used that as a training tool and a challenge,” he said.

The next step in the plan was to integrate Soldiers from another Army Guard element into the training, Loy said. So, he reached out to New York’s 106th RTI.

“They are our neighboring state, and we do a lot of interaction with them,” Loy said.

The New York and New Jersey Guardsmen will depart Joint Base Mcguire-Dix-Lakehurst April 10. They will travel to a training area on the Adriatic Sea near Durres, Albania’s second-largest city, and stay in the field.

During the first week, they will complete situational training required by the officer candidate school program.

On day seven, the officer candidates will visit the city of Durres and participate in a “staff ride” reviewing the region’s history and the battles waged nearby during the Roman civil wars of 44 to 31 B.C.

The second phase of the training will concentrate on platoon-level tactics and give the candidates leadership opportunities.

Yuri Kim, U.S. ambassador to Albania, is expected to view a platoon attack exercise conducted by the Americans and Albanians.

It will be challenging for the New York officer candidates to work with soldiers who speak a different language, Lefton said.

But he thinks the Americans can help the Albanians —whose army was originally modeled on that of the Soviet Union with top-down leadership — learn the more independent, American system of leading troops.

“New Jersey has worked hard to build this model with the Albanians. It is going to be interesting,” Lefton said.
 

 

 

Related Articles
United States Air Force Maj. Gen. Michael Bank, the commander of the New York Air National Guard and Swedish air force Maj. Gen. Jonas Wikman, chief of the Swedish air force, pose for a photo during a visit to Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in Syracuse, NY, Apr. 7. During the visit, which was part of a state partnership program engagement, Wikman also toured the Eastern Air Defense Sector and an Air Force Research Laboratory facility in Rome, NY.
New York Guard Hosts Swedish Air Force Leader
By Alexander Rector, | April 17, 2025
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The head of the Swedish air force got a first hand look at New York Air National Guard MQ-9 Reaper operations during his recent visit to Hancock Field Air National Guard Base. Maj. Gen. Jonas Wikman of the...

New York Army National Guard Soldiers take on the 12-mile ruck march to test endurance and resilience during the 2025 State Best Warrior Competition at Camp Smith Training Site, near Peekskill, N.Y., April 5, 2025. The Best Warrior Competition, held April 7-11, 2025, is an annual event in which junior enlisted Soldiers and non-commissioned officers from various units compete in several events intended to test their military skills and knowledge, as well as their physical fitness and endurance.
Cavalry and Infantry Soldiers Win N.Y. Army Guard Best Warrior Competition
By Staff Sgt. Richard Trinh, | April 15, 2025
CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, N.Y. – After four days of physically demanding tasks, mental challenges and military skill assessments, a cavalry scout and infantryman earned top honors in this year’s New York Army National Guard...

Swedish Army Corporal Simon Drie Runnander, receives an award from New York Army National Guard Command Sgt. Major Edwin Garris, to mark his participation in the New York National Guard Best Warrior Competition, during a dinner at the United States Military Academy at West Point on April 10, 2025. Drie Runnander and Pvt. Jasper Petersson, took part in the annual Best Warrior event as part of the New York National Guard State Partnership Program.
Swedish Soldiers Compete in NY Guard Competition
By Staff Sgt. Richard Trinh and Eric Durr, | April 15, 2025
CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, N.Y. — Two soldiers from the Swedish Armed Forces competed with New York Army National Guard troops during the 2025 Best Warrior Competition last week. Swedish Cpl. Simon Drie Runnander and Pvt...