The professionalization of noncommissioned officers (NCO) was the central theme during the second videoconference of army commanders at the Conference of American Armies (CAA) on September 30, 2020, with the participation of 26 countries.
“The Brazilian Army commander, General Edson Leal Pujol, addressed the aspects of training and specialization in the sergeant program, as well as the establishment of a new NCO school that will centralize training in a single place,” the Brazilian Army’s Social Communication Center (CCOMSEx, in Portuguese) told Diálogo.
“Gen. Pujol also discussed the current training program for sergeants to face new challenges and threats in different environments, in addition to their role on the future battlefield,” CCOMSEx said.
The videoconference included the CAA’s 22 member nations (Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela), three observer armies (Belize, Guyana, and Suriname), and a special observer army (Spain).
Members of the Central American Armed Forces Conference and the Inter-American Defense Board also participated.
General Francisco J. Varela, the Spanish Army chief of Staff, highlighted the event’s importance. “The CAA constitutes an exceptional framework for the Spanish Army, allowing for closer historical and cultural ties with the American armies,” the Spanish Army said in a statement.
“In addition, it contributes to our operational experience and that obtained in other areas of common interest in the defense field,” the Spanish Army said.
Participants also shared the lessons learned about armed forces’ support in the fight against COVID-19.
The CAA was created in 1960 as a forum to exchange experiences. Currently, the XXXIV Debate Cycle is under way, under the coordination of Brigadier General Agustín H. Cejas, the Argentine Army chief of General Staff.
Brazil is preparing to lead the CAA’s XXXV Cycle in the 2022-2023 biennium.