Experiences on fighting in Afghanistan

Fighting in Afghanistan

Background

The Danish media often have full reports about the war in Afghanistan - whereas the same incidents, sometimes involving several hours of firefighting are only briefly mentioned on the army's own website. There are no war journalists stationed with the Danish army and therefore its difficult to find first-hand information on how the soldiers perform their duties. When the Danish army was in Iraq the battle group was deployed under the command of the British task force, this is still the case in Afghanistan.

The Speaker

Soren Sjogren is an officer in the Danish Guards Hussars Regiment, he has seen active duty as commander of 30 infantry men and women in 2007 in Basra province Iraq and in 2009 in Helman province Afghanistan. Without discussing the merits of the individual conflicts or whether war is right or wrong, he speaks in two complimentary lectures about his experiences as a soldier and a leader in combat in Afghanistan. In the lecture "Fighting in Afghanistan as we saw it" the audience will experience the intensity of fighting the Taliban in Helman's green zone. They will hear about patrolling with the second platoon and dealing with the local people. Authentic helmet-cam recordings will enable viewers to actually see for themselves    how the fighting is conducted. In the lecture "Leadership under extreme pressure" the focus is on the job of leading men and women in battle.

Danish commitment in Afghanistan

Denmark has deployed troops to ISAF since 2002. Currently there are approximately 750 Danish troops in the country. The majority are working under British command in Helman province in southern Afghanistan.