The ceremony of transfer of authority to the leadership of the Multinational Battle Group between the commander of the 7th Bersaglieri regiment of Altamura, Colonel Andrea Fraticelli and the Parisian Michelangelo Genchi commander of the 6th Bersaglieri regiment of Trapani took place at the Novo Selo Training Area .
Present at the ceremony as the highest national military authority, the general of the air force, Nicola Lanza de Cristoforis, deputy commander of the operational command of interforce forces (COVI), who wanted to thank the Bulgarian and Allied authorities for the support provided to the Italian contingent and for the many attestations of friendship and camaraderie.
During his speech, Major General Dorin Toma, commander of the Multinational Division South East, said that "NATO can count on a Battle Group ready and trained to react in the event of an aggression", underlining the strategic importance that the presence of its assets on Bulgarian territory assumes for NATO in the context of the enhanced Vigilance Activity initiative. General Toma thanked Colonel Fraticelli and the Italian military for the excellent work done during the operational semester.
Colonel Fraticelli, in his farewell speech, thanked the soldiers of the Battle Group units for the professionalism and mature sense of military discipline demonstrated during the intense training activities carried out over the last six months.
With today's ceremony of Transfer of Authority, in addition to confirming the continuity of the training and operational commitment made on the Bulgarian territory by the Italian Armed Forces, we wanted to greet and welcome the Bersaglieri of the 6th regiment, who are preparing in turn to experience an intense period of activity that will see them engaged and protagonists for the next six months.
The operations conducted by the Italian Armed Forces on the eastern flank of NATO are ordered by the Chief of the Defense Staff and are under the coordination and direction of the operational command of interforce forces (COVI).
