The second phase of Joint Stars 2022/2023, the most important exercise in the Italian defence panorama, which saw the participation of the Sant'Anna School, has ended
Students from selected universities had the opportunity to interact firsthand as advisors in Sardinia, thanks to the collaboration with the Armed Forces
The second phase of Joint Stars 2022/2023 (JOST 22/23), the most important exercise in the Italian defense panorama, has come to an end in Sardinia. The program, organized directly by the Defense General Staff, has an inter-force and inter-agency connotation, with the participation along with the Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force and Carabinieri) of bodies such as the Italian Red Cross, Civil Defense, Fire Brigade, and Guardia di Finanza.
The main purposes of the exercise are to train the readiness of the military instrument, as well as to increase the integration and interoperability of the national military components with those of NATO and other state bodies involved in public order management, counter-terrorism and trafficking activities, refugee relief, and the management of emergency situations. The scope is that of a Small Joint Operation, in adherence to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, in a complex, multi-domain (air, land, maritime, cyber and space) scenario.
JOST 2022/2023: the phases and the role of the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies
JOST 22/23 was characterized by two phases. The first phase (Command Post Exercise - CPX) involved an operational planning activity, from December 12, 2022 to January 27, 2023 in Civitavecchia, Italy, at the Italian Army Simulation and Validation Center (CESIVA). The second phase, on the other hand, consisted of actual conduct of a military defense and security operation (Live Exercise - LIVEX) and took place in Sardinia, from May 8 to 26, 2023.
University students from the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, LUISS, LUMSA and the University of Genoa were also involved during the exercise. In particular, regarding the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Marco Vento and Angelica Gimbo, students in the Master's program in International Security Studies, and Giulia Bosi, a doctoral student in Human Rights and Global Politics, participated in the exercise in Sardinia.
The students attended the exercise in the roles of advisors, mainly in the areas of CIMIC (Civil-Military Cooperation), PI (Public Information) and LEGAD (Legal Advisor). They also received briefings on the roles and functioning of the different Armed Forces and State bodies, taking advantage of the opportunity to visit their assets and understand their functioning in a concrete way. Moreover, the university group was able to observe some of the exercise events, including the fire exercise with air and ground assets at the Capo Teulada polygon. Lastly, there was no shortage of opportunities to interact with key military and institutional personnel such as Defense Chief of Staff Dragone and General Figliuolo.
Giulia Bosi comments, "These kinds of collaborations between the academy and the Armed Forces are extremely valuable for both parties. Giving students the opportunity to take part in JOST allows them to understand the complexity of reality, and return to books and research activity with a totally different awareness. On the other hand, in my opinion, activities like these also benefit the Armed Forces, which benefit from greater interaction with civilians".
Cover: Students with representatives of the Italian Red Cross (ItRC) Volunteer Military Corps and the ItRC Voluntary Nurses
