Centre of attention

Impact: Col Andrew Nikolic with British counterparts. Photo by AB Phil Cullinan

By Capt Chantal Llora

A GROUP of 14 Australians is making an impact in the hub of the Southern Iraq Operations centre.

The members are under the control of Col Andrew Nikolic, who said the British were “in awe of the contribution” of the small group.

Maj-Gen J.B Dutton, Commanding General Multi-National Division - Southeast (MND SE), is proud of the work the Australians have contributed to the task group.

“There is only a small group of Australians with me and it’s indicative of the work they do that we have them in such key positions,” he said.

“The Australian training structure and outlook is very similar to the British and they are able to integrate themselves perfectly with our aims.”

Col Nikolic’s group is broken into two task units, the Australian National Representatives (ANR) and the embedded staff.

The ANR, formed when the decision to set up AMTG was made, is the link between Australian Headquarters, Baghdad, and AMTG.

MND SE is controlled by the British and looks after four provinces in Iraq – Basrah, Maysan, Dhi-Qar and Al Muthanna.

It focuses on two main tasks; security and stability, and security sector reform.

“We make sure that the training of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) does not get interrupted, so providing security is integral to our work here. We’re here to train the ISF so that they can take responsibility for their own security,” Col Nikolic said.