USAWHC and Chile deepen geospatial partnership across the Western Hemisphere

U.S. and Chilean Army personnel convened Sept. 1-3 at the Instituto Geográfico Militar in Santiago for a Geospatial Tactical Workshop and subject-matter expert exchange aimed at deepening cooperation in geospatial operations. The engagement involved soldiers from the U.S. Army Western Hemisphere Command’s 512th Engineer Detachment Geospatial Planning Cell, the G-37 Engineer Directorate, and the G-2 Intelligence Directorate, alongside Chilean Army and institute specialists.

The event supported agreements stemming from the 20th Bilateral Army Staff Meeting between the two armies in 2025 and focused on building partner capacity in geospatial engineering, improving integrated geospatial data acquisition, and establishing a durable framework for collaboration, knowledge sharing, and innovation. It also advanced goals to strengthen the partnership between USAWHC and the Chilean Army through shared tactical geospatial processes, increased interoperability, and a deeper mutual understanding of capabilities.

“Workshops like this are essential to strengthening interoperability and building a shared understanding of how geospatial engineering and geographic information system capabilities support operations at both the operational and tactical levels,” said Maj. Alfredo Carrillo, officer in charge of the 512th Engineer Detachment Geospatial Planning Cell. “By bringing together geospatial experts from the Chilean Army and the Instituto Geográfico Militar, we are able to share knowledge, better understand each other’s capabilities, and identify opportunities to better integrate our geospatial efforts. Ultimately, these exchanges strengthen partner capacity and help ensure we are better prepared to operate together across the Western Hemisphere.”

Over three days, participants examined ways to enhance interoperability, expand knowledge exchange, and develop integrated solutions using geospatial assets. Discussions covered tactics, techniques, and procedures for unmanned aircraft systems reporting and visualization, request-for-information processes, and data collection methods leveraging both unmanned aircraft systems and ground-based tools.

The workshop concluded with a shared commitment to future geospatial integration, sustained collaboration, continued innovation, and ongoing exchanges to further improve interoperability between the U.S. and Chilean armies.