VS: My guests today are Brigadier McMahon from Great Britain and General Dan Grecu from our country, for a short interview for Focus Geopolitics.
General, how is the activity of military reservists perceived at both NATO and national level?

Brigadier Jay McMahon: Well, good morning. Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you. I’m Brigadier Jay McMahon. I’m the President of CIOMR, which is the International Confederation of Medical Reserve Officers.
Our reserve activity within NATO is really important, especially within the medical sphere. A large part of our medical capability across NATO is significantly augmented by the reserves. So the ability to get together, to meet and to share ideas is really important. We also run some training courses which introduce some of our younger officers to NATO at an early stage, and we can touch on that a little later.

General Dan Grecu: For me, as part of CIOR — the Interallied Confederation of Reserve Officers — it was very important to have the chance to host here representatives from twenty-nine countries. Not only for the knowledge gained, but first of all to show our solidarity and our common goals in what we are doing here in Romania during this joint Congress of all three confederations and each national association.

VS: What is the public’s attitude toward the reserves in Great Britain?

Brigadier Jay McMahon: Well, I won’t talk just about Great Britain, but I think generally the reserves are held in high regard. It is an opportunity to serve the country, and from the medical perspective, any contribution will be part of a multinational effort, especially in large-scale operations. Our unifying purpose is to ensure that those brave men and women — the soldiers, sailors and aviators who put themselves in harm’s way — get the best possible medical care.

VS: And for Romania?

General Dan Grecu: For Romania it’s a bit different — not regarding the public attitude, because the public attitude is generally favourable toward the reserves. What we need is a better attitude from our leadership, especially from the politicians, to take care of the reservists and also to take care of the operational reserve, which is much more important in times of crisis.

VS: And the next question: What military training programmes do you conduct for the military reserves in Great Britain?

Brigadier Jay McMahon: Well, I’ll talk about the conference here and what we are doing this week. We have a variety of different programmes. We conduct workshops which look at sharing lessons learned and also at the latest innovations in technology.
In addition, we are running two separate programmes this week. One is for our junior officers — introducing them to NATO early in their careers so they understand how that collaboration works and start building their own networks and relationships. We are also running, for the first time, an intermediate course for those who are coming back at a slightly more senior level, sharing their experiences in NATO and understanding where NATO stands at this moment in time.

VS: Thank You!