It took place at Camp Arena, home of the Train Advise Assist Command West (TAAC-W), Italian-led NATO command of the mission in Afghanistan "Resolute Support" (RS), the alternation ceremony between the personnel of the 132nd armored brigade "Ariete" under the command of Brigadier General Enrico Barduani, and the successor of the alpine brigade "Julia" under the command of Brigadier General Alberto Vezzoli.
The commander of RS, General (USA) Austin Scott Miller, took part in the ceremony, which took place in reduced form, in compliance with anti-covid measures.
In his speech, the RS commander expressed his satisfaction with the excellent work done by the Italian contingent and praised General Barduani and all the soldiers of the "Ariete" brigade for the excellent results obtained in these eight months in training activities. , advice and assistance in favor of the Afghan security forces and institutions and for the numerous civil-military cooperation initiatives carried out in support of the local population.
In retracing the salient moments of the mandate ofRam in Afghanistan, during which, on February 29, the historic agreement of Doha was reached, between the United States of America and the Taliban, for the gradual withdrawal from the country of the troops of the international coalition, General Miller said "This is a complex mission and what I can say about Italy is that it is a friendly nation that provides a constant commitment to support the mission".
At the same time, the leadership of the Task Force Arena, unit that guarantees operational and logistical support to the TAAC-WEST, between the 11th Bersaglieri Regiment of Orcenico Superiore (Pordenone), under the command of Colonel Lorenzo Puglisi, and the 8th Alpine Regiment of Venzone (Udine) under the command of the Colonel Franco Del Favero.
Remarkable the number of activities that advisors of the “Ariete” brigade have developed, since December 2019, in favor of the Afghan security forces, in particular the 207th Corps of the Afghan Army and the provincial police commands. A commitment that has not been slowed down with the advent of the covid, but has been further strengthened by making extensive use of technological communication systems.
Almost 1500 consultancy activities were carried out at Camp Arena, summoning the counterpart, 91 activities carried out at home in the Afghan departments and over 5.000 virtual engagements. In addition, 33 courses were held, mainly inspired by the principle of train the trainer (training of instructors), for a total of about three hundred trained soldiers and policemen, on subjects such as counter IED, intelligence, map reading e self defense.
In addition to this, 66 meetings (shure) at various levels were organized on issues related to the security, logistics and efficiency of the Afghan departments which made it possible to improve and make the work of the institutions and defense systems more credible and effective. locals.
The commitment on the civil-military cooperation front was also intense, with the realization of ten projects that have made it possible to maintain excellent relations with the local population and have contributed to improving the living conditions of Afghan society. From the restructuring of the Guzarah police headquarters to the refurbishment of the Herat women's orphanage, from the construction of an artesian well in the village of Mahala Dash to the numerous donations of food, equipment and medical supplies, the contingent of theRam continued to demonstrate its closeness to the Afghan community, which is engaged in the difficult path of building a solid and prosperous future.
The NATO "Resolute Support" mission is made up of military personnel from 39 nations, with the aim of contributing to the training, assistance and advice in favor of Afghan institutions and security forces, in order to make them self-sufficient and capable to independently provide for the protection of the country and its citizens.
