As the relative cool of winter settled across the Florida Panhandle, one of the state’s most combat-tested National Guard units was deep in preparation for a mission that will be defined by diplomacy and dialogue.
“We just came off a training rotation this summer that was very much large-scale combat in its orientation,” said Lt. Col. Daniel Brown, commander of the Florida Army National Guard’s 1st Squadron, 153rd Cavalry Regiment. “(But) this deployment will be very different — there will be no combatants or engagements of that nature.”
Mobilized to fight in both World Wars and Iraq and Afghanistan, the Darkhorse Squadron now has orders for Kosovo, where about 200 of its soldiers will forego the familiarity of kinetic action, and instead, carry out a yearlong mission anchored in peacekeeping and partnership.
“Our mission really revolves around ensuring a secure environment,” said Brown. “We’re responsible for a safe environment, freedom of movement, and ensuring the border is respected in accordance with the United Nations (Resolution 1244).”
U.S. military operations in Kosovo began in 1999 in response to ethnic violence that haunted the region. Those NATO-led, peacekeeping operations continue to the present, with National Guard rotations playing heavily into the international Kosovo Force, or KFOR.
Drawn from the Panhandle communities in which they work and live, Darkhorse soldiers’ lives form a bridge across the military-civilian divide. Between conducting rescues while battered by hurricane winds and navigating the threat of civil unrest, Florida has granted these guardsmen the community-engagement skills essential to KFOR operations.
“I have 38 soldiers from a diversity of backgrounds — law enforcement, corrections, and people who understand how to interact with a civilian population,” said Capt. Harleigh Payne, who will lead the 1-153rd Calvary’s Troop C in Kosovo, where she’ll also bring her own civilian experience to bear on the mission.
“I’m with Florida Fish and Wildlife,” said Payne. “I’m a law enforcement officer, and that experience has prepared me for handling high-stress environments appropriately and with tact.”
Part of the ebb and flow of Kosovo operations is partnership with other nation’s forces. The Florida guardsmen will conduct patrols and security operations in close coordination with NATO partner forces.
“We’ll be working with other entities — Kosovo Police, Kosovo Border Patrol, and partner nations — Latvia, Turkey, Poland, and Germany,” said Brown.
But as Payne notes, building trust with other nations’ forces doesn’t always require a shared language, a lesson learned from a deployment to Kuwait, which concluded with an interforce volleyball game, a symbol of hard-earned camaraderie.
“In 2021, we were regularly deployed near the border of Syria,” Payne said, recalling her work alongside Kuwaiti forces. “For much of it, we didn’t have an interpreter, so we had to rely on body language to work through conversations.”
Though its heritage was forged in battle, the Darkhorse Squadron now embarks on a mission where success is measured by the peace that is kept.
“Our goal is turning off that warfighting mindset and focusing more on civil operations,” said Brown. “Because we have that experience, and because we’re the National Guard in Florida, I’m confident these soldiers will be able to do that and be invested in the community.”