Exercise Gobi Wolf 2022, a multinational civil and military training exercise, commenced with an opening ceremony and expert academic discussion in Bayankhongor, Mongolia, on 5 September.

The six-day exercise is part of the Pacific Resilience Disaster Response Exercise and Exchange (DREE) program, which focuses on interagency coordination and foreign humanitarian assistance. Gobi Wolf is coordinated by the Mongolian National Emergency Management Agency and U.S. Army Pacific.

Exercise Gobi Wolf originated in 2009 in Ulaanbaatar with a training scenario involving a hazardous materials spill. Now in its tenth iteration, the exercise will focus on a simulated earthquake scenario 400 miles southwest of the capital city.

The DREE consists of an expert academic discussion, table top exercise and field training exercise. These three main events are designed to develop those comprehensive measures and to test disaster responses involving interagency coordination.

During the EAD’s two-days of presentations, participants will collaborate with experts in their field and analyze various disaster situations. Following the EAD, small groups will actualize the concepts and practices discussed and generate response concepts in the TTX. Simultaneously, the week-long field training exercise will include hazmat response, search and rescue and mass medical care.

Historically, the Gobi Wolf exercise involves countries beyond Mongolia and the United States and this year follows suit with its approximately 300 participants. Delegates from Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the United Kingdom and Vietnam are attending this year.

U.S. military and civilian participants include experts from the active duty and reserve components of U.S. Army Pacific and Pacific Air Forces, Alaska and Washington National Guards, U.S. Forest Service, and Alaska’s City of Palmer Fire & Rescue, as well as exercise planning and facilitations from the Defense Security Cooperation Agency’s Institute for Security Governance.