NATO EOD Staff Officer Training Course Successfully Held in Wrocław, Poland

From 31 March to 11 April 2025, the NATO Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Staff Officer Training Course took place at the Military Engineering and CBRN Training Centre in Wrocław, Poland. Organized in response to current operational needs, this course is part of the training portfolio of the NATO EOD Centre of Excellence (COE), situated in Trenčín, Slovak Republic.

The course brought together 18 students from 11 nations — Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Czech Republic, Spain, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, and Ukraine. Of these, 17 participants successfully fulfilled all course requirements and graduated, while one student, due to the demanding nature of the training, participated without completing all objectives.

The primary aim of the NATO EOD Staff Officer Training Course is to educate and train non-qualified EOD staff officers to reach a basic level of proficiency in accordance with NATO standards as well highlight the main UN principles in EO threat mitigation. Upon successful course completion, officers are equipped to plan, prepare, command, control, and coordinate EOD operations within multinational battalion and brigade-level command structures.

This year iteration of the course was supported by Subject Matter Experts from several training institutions, including:

• 905th SCSC Nováky (SVK)
• C-IED COE Madrid (ESP)
• Defence Staff of the Lithuanian Armed Forces (LTU)
• JCBRND COE Vyškov (CZE)
• JISR Institute Prostějov (CZE)
• LNAF TRADOC Ādaži (LVA)
• Military Engineering and CBRN Training Centre (POL)
• UNMAS New York (USA)

The collaboration among these experts and the diverse international student cohort highlighted the multinational value and operational importance of the course in developing NATO's EOD capabilities. During the course daily hot wash ups and course conclusion, participants provided positive feedback that was expressing high level of satisfaction with the course’s delivery. Students recognized the course significant value in enhancing their professional competencies and supporting their future careers. Additionally, they offered constructive suggestions for further course development to ensure its ongoing relevance with current trends and advancements in the EOD field.

The next NATO EOD Staff Officer Training Course is scheduled for February 2026 and will take place at the NATO EOD Centre of Excellence in Trenčín, Slovak Republic. This upcoming course will be specifically tailored to meet the training requirements of the Slovak and Hungarian Armed Forces nominees.

Author: CPT Radek MICHALKA, (CZE-A)

Photos: EOD COE Archive