Three nations, one objective

Text: Levente Petróczy | Photo: Ákos Pintér | 10:56 June 8, 2026

“The soldiers of three nations were exercising together and learning from each other, and so they have achieved their objective by successfully clearing the trenches. This shows that the soldiers of the Ohio National Guard serve together with the Hungarian and Serbian forces as true comrades” – said Major General Matthew S. Woodruff, Adjutant General, Ohio National Guard on June 5 in Táborfalva.

26006005_Sándorfalva - Neighbors 2026 _PAK_-27

Originally, Neighbours was a Serbian–Hungarian exercise, which was later joined by the Ohio National Guard. The soldiers of the 2nd Grenadier Battalion of the HDF 30th Mechanized Infantry Brigade have been participating in the cooperation since the beginnings. Within this framework, they are now exercising together with the designated personnel of the 11th Infantry Battalion of the 1st Army Brigade of the Serbian Armed Forces and the 145th Armored Regiment of the 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

“To us, this exercise has outstanding significance because every single day we learn as much as we give. Trench warfare is one of the most complex tactical tasks, so I was happy to see the personnel executing it successfully” – this was how the major general summarized the last day of his visit to Hungary.

26006005_Sándorfalva - Neighbors 2026 _PAK_-41

The Ohio National Guard joined the exercise 13 years ago in order to strengthen partnership and develop training. The three nations form a combined company, which is augmented with a battalion staff of mixed composition. “These are the best occasions for us to synchronize leadership activities, learn from the Serbian and Ohio comrades, and also help each other in planning and task execution” – said Colonel Ádám Dienes, Deputy Commander, HDF 30th Mechanized Infantry Brigade while listing the advantages of the multinational environment.

He added that they don’t let the lessons learned at the exercise get lost, so they will analyze and incorporate them into their procedures. Brigadier General Jovica Matic, Commander, 1st Army Brigade, Serbian Armed Forces told us that besides the successfully executed closing task, another measure of success on the exercise is the knowledge they acquire, thanks to which all three nations are able to increase their engagement in foreign missions.