Members of the Afghan National Army color guard at Camp Hero, Afghanistan, post the national colors during a graduation ceremony at the Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar, Sept. 13, 2012. The RMTC-K graduated more than 1,000 soldiers at the...
Col. Mohammad Haroon (left), Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar commander and Maj. Gen. Abdul Hamid (front), 205th Hero Corp commander, inspect Afghan National Army soldiers at the RMTC-K graduation ceremony at Camp Hero, Afghanistan, Sept. 13...
Maj. Gen. Abdul Hamid (front), 205th Hero Corp commander, addresses graduating Afghan National Army soldiers at the Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar graduation ceremony at Camp Hero, Afghanistan, Sept. 13, 2012. The center graduated more than...
Afghan National Army soldiers wait for their graduation ceremony to begin at the Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar at Camp Hero, Afghanistan, Sept. 13, 2012. The center graduated more than 1,000 soldiers at the ceremony from both the basic...
Afghan National Army Command Sgt. Major Kefayatullah, 205th Hero Corp. command sergeant major, salutes a soldier receiving a certificate of excellence during the Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar graduation at Camp Hero, Afghanistan, Sept. 13...
A newly graduated Afghan National Army soldier salutes a senior officer of the 205th Hero Corp after receiving a certificate of excellence during the Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar graduation ceremony at Camp Hero, Afghanistan, Sept. 13...
Maj. Gen. Abdul Hamid (left) commanding general of the 205th Hero Corp, and Col. Mohammad Haroon (right), Regional Military Training Center-South commander applaud new graduates at the center's graduation ceremony at Camp Hero, Afghanistan, Sept. 13...
A newly graduated Afghan National Army soldier salutes a senior officer of the 205th Hero Corp after receiving a certificate of excellence during the Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar graduation ceremony at Camp Hero, Afghanistan, Sept. 13...
Members of the Afghan National Army color guard at Camp Hero Afghanistan, post the national colors during a graduation ceremony at the Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar here, Sept. 13, 2012. The center graduated more than 1,000 soldiers at the...
KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (Oct. 2, 2012) -- The Afghan National Army graduated a new class of soldiers from the Regional Military Training Center-Kandahar at Camp Hero, Sept. 13.
The ceremony included 981 basic training graduates, as well as 43 officer basic course graduates. The enlisted soldiers completed 10 weeks of training, while the officer candidates completed an 8-week course.
"[The students] did very well," said Bulgarian Army Lt. Col. Ivo Ivanov, commander of the RMTC-K senior adviser team. The advisory team is part of NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan.
"The instructors had very good preparation. They only needed a little help," said Ivanov.
Ivonov and his team mentor instructors at the training center, including the basic training and officer basic course instructors. All the instructors training the students are exclusively Afghan soldiers.
The training center is well on its way to becoming self-sufficient and graduating soldiers without the help of advisers.
"The next cycle will start to work without our support," said Ivanov, describing the gradual reduction of NATO support.
Ivanov's team will soon be replaced by another Bulgarian team, slated to serve a six-month tour as the RMTC-K's last advisor team.
Most of the newly-graduated soldiers will continue their military education with specialized training at either RMTC-K or Kabul, while a select few will be assigned directly to the 205th Hero Corp here at Camp Hero.
