Change to tactical command of the operation Safe Mediterranean, the 13th since the launch dated August 2022. The ceremony took place via videoconference with the transferring Rear Admiral Stefano Frumento and the accepting Rear Admiral Alberto Tarabotto, connected on board their respective flagship, the frigate Carlo Bergamini underway and the destroyer Durand De La Penne moored in the Mar Grande Naval Station of Taranto. Presiding over the ceremony, connected from the operational headquarters in Santa Rosa, was the commander in chief of the naval team, team admiral Aurelio De Carolis.
In his speech, at the end of the 45 days spent as tactical commander of the operation, Rear Admiral Frumento, commander of the first naval division, recalled how the rotation just concluded was characterized by intense support activity for diplomacy and national institutions abroad, as well as frequent interactions with NATO and UNIFIL Maritime Task Force devices to increase valuable interoperability and collaboration between the assets deployed in the Mediterranean. An intense activity that he saw operating “motivated, dedicated, prepared women and men – reiterated the transferring commander – Those same Navy personnel who spend themselves for the collective good without saving, constantly operating and training as well as guaranteeing the best possible efficiency of the instrument entrusted to them".
In his acceptance speech, Rear Admiral Tarabotto, commander of the Fourth Naval Division, assured the commitment "to continue the action carried out by previous rotations with the utmost determination and total self-sacrifice for the achievement of the entrusted mission".
At the end of the ceremony, Admiral De Carolis underlined that during this period the commitment of the forces assigned to OMS was aimed at guaranteeing “regular trade flows in the Mediterranean, the principle of free use of the high seas and, above all, to safeguard our national interests, from fishing activities to those of exploration and exploitation of the seabed. With particular reference to underwater spaces, Admiral De Carolis added that "the Fondali Sicuri operation saw the constant monitoring of underwater infrastructures of national interest, vital for the country's economy".
The operation Safe Mediterranean it is just one of the commitments of the naval team, which - the commander in chief of the naval team pointed out - “in this 2024 it promises to be even greater than in past years". In detail the Navy, in “a mammoth commitment, it has 8 ships outside the Mediterranean and a daily average of more than 3.000 sailors with 40 units engaged in operational or training activities, 2 submarines, 10 helicopters and 10 boarding units of the San Marco marine brigade in addition to the staff, always of San Marco, operating in Sinai and Mozambique in support of local armed forces". At the end of his speech, the admiral addressed the staff, "to the men and women of the naval team, whose abilities and spirit of service I appreciate and to whom I recognize the merit of the results we are achieving". So an invitation: “Let's continue like this, in line with our traditions and our values, always animated by enthusiasm and aware of the importance of our mission for the Nation".
