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Robin Sage exercise to be held across 25 North Carolina counties for Special Forces candidates

4-6 minutes

Special Forces candidates assigned to the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School assault enemy role players as they take part in the final phase of field training known as Robin Sage in central North Carolina, Sept. 28, 2021. The exercise for soldiers in the Special Forces qualification course is being held this year from Jan. 22, 2022, to Feb. 4, 2022, across 25 North Carolina counties.

Special Forces candidates will participate in a two-week training exercise across 25 North Carolina counties and three South Carolina counties this week.

Known as Robin Sage, the exercise is the final test for soldiers going through the Special Forces Qualification Course.

It is the last training exercise before students graduate and move to an assignment with one of the Army's Special Forces units.

The exercise is Jan. 22 to Feb. 4, according to a news release from the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, where the participants are students at Fort Bragg.

“We appreciate the support and consideration the citizens of North Carolina extend to the soldiers participating in the exercise and thank them for their understanding of any inconveniences the training may cause,” the news release states.

Surrounding counties where the exercise will be held include Bladen, Cumberland, Harnett, Hoke, Lee, Moore and Robeson counties.

Other North Carolina counties for the exercise are: Alamance, Anson, Brunswick, Cabarrus, Chatham, Columbus, Davidson, Guilford, Montgomery, New Hanover, Randolph, Richmond, Rowan, Sampson, Scotland, Stanly, Union, and Wake counties.

The exercise will also be held in Chesterfield, Dillon and Marlboro counties in South Carolina.

Robin Sage is an unconventional warfare exercise that has been held regularly since 1974.

Special forces candidates are placed in an environment that simulates “political instability characterized by armed conflict,” to force the soldiers “to analyze and solve problems to meet the challenges,” the news release states.

Special Forces candidates assigned to the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School engage enemy role players during the final phase of field training known as Robin Sage in central North Carolina, Sept. 28, 2021. The exercise for soldiers in the Special Forces qualification course is being held this year from Jan. 22, 2022, to Feb. 4, 2022, across 25 North Carolina counties.

Throughout the exercise, military and civilian support personnel and community volunteers serving as the auxiliary participate in or provide support, along with other Fort Bragg service members.

The service members act as realistic opposing forces and guerrilla freedom fighters in a fictional country known as Pineland, according to the news release.

Civilian volunteers throughout the state act as role-players.

“Participation by these volunteers is crucial to the success of this training, and past trainees attest to the realism they add to the exercise,” the news release states.

On Feb. 23, 2002, a Moore County deputy who said he was not notified about the exercise shot and killed 1st Lt. Tallas Tomeny and injured then-Sgt. Stephen Phelps, who were wearing civilian clothing.

Tomeny’s estate settled its claims against the Moore County Sheriff's Department in October 2009 in a civil suit with undisclosed terms.

According to the suit, the soldiers believed the deputy was part of the role-playing Robin Sage exercise, and the deputy shot Tomeny after searching him and Phelps as he tried to flee.

According to the Special Warfare Center and School’s news release, formal written notifications, and a follow-up visit was given to the chiefs of all law enforcement agencies in affected counties where the upcoming exercise will be held.

The news release states that all of the exercise’s movements have been coordinated with public safety officials throughout and within the towns and counties hosting the training.

• All civilian and non-student military participants are briefed on procedures to follow if there is contact with law enforcement officials.

• Students will only wear civilian clothes if the situation warrants, as determined by the instructors, and will wear a distinctive brown armband during these instances.

• Training areas and vehicles used during exercises are clearly labeled.

“Safety is always the command's top priority during all training events,” the news release states.

Residents may hear blank gunfire and see occasional flares.

Special Forces candidates assigned to the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School participate in the final phase of field training known as Robin Sage Sept. 28, 2021. The exercise for soldiers in the Special Forces qualification course is being held this year from Jan. 22, 2022, to Feb. 4, 2022, across 25 North Carolina counties.

“Controls are in place to ensure there is no risk to persons or property,” the news release states.

Residents with concerns should contact local law enforcement, who will contact exercise control officials.

Staff writer Rachael Riley can be reached at rriley@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3528.

Special Forces candidates assigned to the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School take part in the final phase of field training known as Robin Sage Sept. 28, 2021. The exercise for soldiers in the Special Forces qualification course is being held held this year from Jan. 22, 2022, to Feb. 4, 2022, across 25 North Carolina counties.

Special Forces candidates assigned to the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School assault enemy role players as they take part in the final phase of field training known as Robin Sage in central North Carolina, Sept. 28, 2021. The exercise for soldiers in the Special Forces qualification course is being held this year from Jan. 22, 2022, to Feb. 4, 2022, across 25 North Carolina counties.

Special Forces candidates with the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School assault deploy during the final phase of field training known as Robin Sage Sept. 28, 2021. The exercise for soldiers in the Special Forces qualification course will is being held this year from Jan. 22, 2022, to Feb. 4, 2022, across 25 North Carolina counties.

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https://www.cbsnews.com/news/north-korea-ballistic-missile-7th-test-january/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&linkId=150211676

cbsnews.com

North Korea carries out 7th launch this month

6-7 minutes

Updated on: January 29, 2022 / 9:41 PM / AP

North Korea on Sunday fired what appeared to be the most powerful missile it has tested since U.S. President Joe Biden took office, as it revives its old playbook in brinkmanship to wrest concessions from Washington and neighbors amid a prolonged stalemate in diplomacy.

Japanese officials said the missile, based on their initial assessment of its flight path, potentially reached a maximum altitude of 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles) and traveled 800 kilometers (497 miles) before landing in the sea.

The flight details suggest the North tested its longest-range ballistic missile since 2017, when it flight-tested three intercontinental range ballistic missiles that demonstrated the potential range to reach deep into the American homeland.

Sunday's test was the North's 7th round of weapons launches this month. The unusually fast pace of tests indicate an intent to pressure the Biden administration over long-stalled nuclear negotiations.

The launch came after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un chaired a ruling party meeting on January 20 where senior party members made a veiled threat to resume testing of nuclear explosives and ICBMs, which Kim suspended in 2018 while initiating diplomacy with the United States.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said the missile flew for around 30 minutes and landed in waters outside Japan's exclusive economic zone.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the North launched one suspected ballistic missile from a northern inland area but didn't immediately provide further flight details.

The Japanese assessments suggest that the North tested an intermediate-range ballistic missile or possibly even a weapon approaching ICBM capacities, said Lee Choon Geun, a missile expert and honorary research fellow at South Korea's Science and Technology Policy Institute.

"I think this means that the North's moratorium (on long-range testing) is effectively over," Lee said.

Japan's coast guard issued a maritime safety warning, saying that an object that was potentially a North Korean ballistic missile could have already landed, but there were no immediate reports of damage to boats or aircraft.

The launch came three days after North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea on Thursday. The North also flight-tested a pair of purported long-range cruise missiles on Tuesday while vowing to strengthen its nuclear "war deterrent" and build more powerful weapons.

North Korea has been ramping up its testing activity in recent months, including seven rounds of weapons launches so far in 2022, demonstrating its military might amid pandemic-related difficulties and a prolonged freeze in nuclear diplomacy with the United States.

Experts say the North could halt its testing spree after the start of the Beijing Winter Olympics next week out of respect for China, its major ally and economic lifeline. But there's also expectation that the North could significantly up the ante in weapons demonstrations once the Olympics end in February to grab the attention of the Biden administration, which has been focusing more on confronting China and Russia over its conflict with Ukraine.

"North Korea is launching a frenzy of missiles before the start of the Beijing Olympics, mostly as military modernization efforts. Pyongyang also wants to boost national pride as it gears up to celebrate political anniversaries in the context of economic struggles," said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul.

"It wants to remind Washington and Seoul that trying to topple it would be too costly. By threatening stability in Asia while global resources are stretched thin elsewhere, Pyongyang is demanding the world compensate it to act like a 'responsible nuclear power,'" Easley added.

North Korea has justified its testing activity as an exercise of its rights to self-defense and threatened stronger action after the Biden administration imposed fresh sanctions following two tests of a purported hypersonic missile earlier this month.

Kim has repeatedly vowed to bolster his nuclear forces since his summitry with then-President Donald Trump derailed in 2019 with the Americans rejecting North Korea's demands for major sanctions relief in exchange for a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities.

While desperate for outside relief as his economy decays under crippling U.S.-led sanctions and pandemic-related difficulties, Kim has showed no willingness to surrender the nuclear weapons and missiles he sees as his strongest guarantee of survival. Analysts say Kim's pressure campaign is aimed at forcing Washington to accept the North as a nuclear power and convert their nuclear disarmament-for-aid diplomacy into negotiations for mutual arms-reduction.

Kim last year announced a new five-year plan for developing weapons and issued an ambitious wish list that included hypersonic weapons, spy satellites, solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched nuclear missiles.

State media said Friday that Kim visited an unspecified munitions factory producing a "major weapons system," and that the workers pledged loyalty to their leader who "smashes with his bold pluck the challenges of U.S. imperialists and their vassal forces."

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