As Paraguay hosts the 20th edition of Fuerzas Comando 2026, the country welcomes elite military and police units from across the Americas. The event, established in 2004, is a multinational special operations competition sponsored by the United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM). Representatives from 17 countries participate from 24 to 28 August 2026.
Participants turn their focus to improving cohesive responses to shared regional security challenges. The competition takes place at the Facilities of the Joint Special Forces Battalion (BCFE) and CECOPAZ in Vista Alegre (Paraguayan Chaco).
Throughout the week, teams face a series of physical and tactical challenges designed to test both individual and collective special operations skills. Events include a physical fitness test, pistol and rifle stress courses, precision fire and observation exercises. As well as a combined sniper and assaulter event, a 7.5-mile ruck march, and a team close-quarters battle assessment.
Cross-cultural collaboration behind the scenes
In recent weeks, the Massachusetts National Guard worked alongside the Paraguayan Armed Forces to renovate and improve training facilities. More than 50 soldiers and airmen participated in the joint engineering mission in Paraguay from 13 to 26 July 2026. The task force included personnel from the 181st Engineer Vertical Construction Company and the 102nd Civil Engineer Squadron.
Working alongside Paraguayan counterparts, the teams completed a range of renovation and repair projects. The work involved masonry, roofing, carpentry, tiling, plumbing, and painting to ensure the facilities were ready to receive military personnel from across the hemisphere. Locations included the Centro de Entrenamiento Conjunto de Operaciones de Paz (CECOPAZ), Paraguay’s Joint Peace Operations Training Centre, and a sniper tower located at the Paraguayan Army Infantry School.
Building cooperation
For many of the U.S. personnel involved, the deployment provided an opportunity to work in an unfamiliar environment. Not only that, but to work with limited equipment while sharing expertise with host-nation forces. Despite language differences, participants say the project quickly developed into a highly collaborative effort, with construction work providing a common professional language.
In a Massachusetts National Guard news release, Senior Airman Matthew Herman, a structural specialist with the 102nd Civil Engineer Squadron says: “Normally, when we go out to places, we have all our tools, all of our gear and equipment. Here, they do not have access to as much equipment, but they still make it work. It is impressive to see how you can accomplish the mission with minimal resources, which is a vital skill in contingency environments”
A long-standing partnership
Paraguay and the Massachusetts National Guard have worked together for more than two decades under the State Partnership Program, an initiative that links U.S. states with partner nations to promote military cooperation. Since the relationship was established in 2001, the two sides have regularly participated in joint training activities.
Earlier this year, Paraguay and the United States launched the 3rd edition of the Amistad Medical Mission. The infrastructure upgrades completed in July and the onset of Fuerzas Comando 2026 represent the latest example of that long-running cooperation.
