Corps General Rosario Castellano yesterday left his post as Deputy Commander of the RS mission to UK Corps General Richard Cripwell at the headquarters of the NATO "Resolute Support" (RS) mission of Kabul, after more than a year.
The ceremony, which saw the participation of numerous civil and military authorities, was attended, among others, by the commander of the NATO mission - General Nicholson, if the Italian ambassador in Kabul - dr. Roberto Cantone, NATO Senior Civilian Representative (SCR) and the highest political military posts of the Afghan government, including the Minister of Defense and the Minister of the Interior, ambassadors and diplomatic representations. The event was preceded, in recent days, by the conferral to General Castellano, by the Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, of the honor named "High State Medal of Ghazi Mirbacha Khan". The highest recognition, we read between the lines, was granted within the walls of the Presidential Palace and during an official ceremony, in recognition of "his great efforts to promote the abilities, equipment and livelihood of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) during the NATO mission ".
Armed Corps General Rosario Castellano, during his mandate, had the opportunity to focus his action on the external component of the Ministries for Security, meeting and interacting with the main Afghan interlocutors, both the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of the Interior. The complex scenario with which the senior military authority has faced, even at a particularly delicate moment for Afghanistan, has allowed various interested parties to engage in continuous and constant interaction with the summit of NATO.
During the ceremony, General Castellano said: "It was an exceptional experience, especially for the ability demonstrated by Afghan institutional representatives to seek, with determination and consistency, that governmental reform process to counter the internal cancer of terrorism, illiteracy and poverty. The Afghan people, with courage and honor, are opposed to the brutality of terrorist organizations. "" We have the duty, "the General added," to respect the blood of all the fallen on this territory who have fought valiantly for a Best Afghanistan. "" In this context, "concluded the top military authority," the Italian contingent never missed his contribution, receiving continuous testimony of esteem and gratitude for what he did. "
Since 2001 has been contributing to international engagement in Afghanistan, first with the ISAF Mission and now with RS: the national contingent operates in the west of the country at the Train Advise Assist Command (TAAC) West headquartered in Herat, of which he holds the leadership, as well as in command posts and staff at the headquarters of the mission.
