Did you know that a Brazilian military is among the deadliest in the world?

Luckily, Brazil is not a belligerent country, nor is it usually involved in conflicts around the world. However, this does not mean that there are no soldiers trained and prepared to face - unfortunate - eventualities. In fact, as Bia Silva, one of our readers, told us, there is a Brazilian troop that is among the deadliest on the planet. Did you know that?

This is GRUMEC - Combat Divers Group - an elite military corps that belongs to the Brazilian Navy. According to the Air & Naval Defense website, the troop was established in the 1970s and follows similar principles to the British Navy Special Boats Service and the US Navy Navy Seals.

Elite squad

GRUMEC is subordinate to the Submarine Force, and its base is located at the headquarters of the Brazilian Squadron on Mocanguê Island, in Niterói. Thus, submarines are one of its main forms of transport, taking group members through boats attached to ropes close to the objectives. However, the troop is also prepared to approach the targets by helicopter or parachuting.

So, as you may have already guessed, one of the GRUMEC soldiers' job is to annihilate the enemy before their presence is discovered. Therefore, the military is trained to conduct coastal reconnaissance, sneak infiltration and thwart possible attacks.

According to the Air & Naval Defense, the group has three special operations divisions dedicated to activities that are not associated with resumption and rescue missions and a special division - the GRUMEC or GERR-MEC Special Resumption and Rescue Group - which is these actions.

Training

All soldiers undergoing training learn to deal with diving equipment, weaponry, explosives, and unconventional warfare techniques and are added to operative divisions. After that, the military must wait two to three years until they have acquired the experience required to join GERR-MEC.

For those interested in becoming a member of the group, according to information from the website defense net, the course is divided into two different stages, one for Officers and one for Squares. The first is the Officer Combat Diver Improvement Course - or CAMECO - and is divided into 4 phases (0 to III) and lasting 41 weeks.

The second stage, directed to the Squares, consists of the Special Combat Diver Course - or C-ESP-MEC - lasting 32 weeks and, except for phase 0, the training is similar to CAMECO. You can check the full content through this link.

And for all that, you must be wondering. According to the net defense, Brazil has been gaining a lot of international prominence in recent years, especially after the discovery of pre-salt and the conquest of oil self-sufficiency, not to mention the increase of terrorist actions around the world. Thus, GRUMEC is there to help control maritime areas under Navy jurisdiction and ensure that no enemy approaches.