This morning, at the Courtyard of Honor of the Military Academy of Modena, the official students of the 197 "Tenacia" course were sworn loyalty to the Italian Republic before the defense minister, Senator Roberta Pinotti, and the highest military leaders of the State.
Among those present were the Chief of Defense Staff, General Claudio Graziano, the Army Chief of Staff, Army Corps General Danilo Errico, the General Commander of the Carabinieri Corps, Tullio Army Corps General Seven and the commander for the training, specialization and doctrine Army, Giorgio Battisti Army Corps General.
The course master is Lieutenant Colonel Gianfranco Paglia, gold medal for military valor for the injuries sustained in Mogadishu (Somalia) on 2 July 1993, during the battle of the "Checkpoint Pasta", in which the Italian troops had a fight at fire with the Somali rebels.
After reading the formula of the oath by the commander of the Military Academy, divisional general Salvatore Camporeale, Minister Pinotti said today in front of your families you have taken an oath to the state, to the country. It always excites me to see so many young people making such an important choice. I like the word "tenacity", chosen to identify your course, because not all of us are born with the same characteristics but what allows us to become excellent is precisely the tenacity, the determination that each of us puts into the things we do. Today - continued the Minister - little is said of the young about fatigue and the value of sacrifice. You, on the other hand, practice it daily in study, in exercises and in physical effort. My wish is to combine tenacity with the characteristics of your being.
Emphasizing the high symbolic value of the act of swearing, the Chief of Defense Staff added "the Military Academy represents the place where generations of army officers and the weapon of the carabinieri were forged. When I attended the academy we were in the middle of the cold war, they were difficult years, the Armed Forces were recovering the confidence of the country. Now everything is very different: multi-faceted threats and risks confront us every day with ever new challenges and the training that starts right in the academies is fundamental to allow you future commanders to face them better. The country believes more and more in the Armed Forces and you have to work with tenacity, the name chosen for your course, in order not to disappoint the confidence that the Italians place in us".
The Army Chief of Staff, after greeting and thanking the intervening authorities and guests, addressed the official students of the 197 course, recalling the history of the prestigious Institute and the values that formed the guide of the officers trained at the Military Academy. With today's swearing-in ceremony you have become a full member of that "unique group" of men and women who have served the Fatherland, with value and honor, wherever they have been called by duty - finally concluded General Errico.
The ceremony also saw the participation of local civil and religious authorities, including the mayor Giorgio Muzzarelli, whose presence bears witness to the affection and closeness of the Modena citizens to the Military Academy and to the institution it represents, highlighting the a delicate task entrusted to men and women in uniform, as faithful servants of Italy and of the Constitution. On this occasion the honorary title of "cadet ad honorem" was awarded to Senator Pinotti (photo).
One hundred and eighty-two are the official students of the 197th “Tenacity” course, including sixteen women and six foreign visitors from Afghanistan, Peru and Somalia. Established on January 1, 1678, the Military Academy of Modena is the oldest military training institute in the world. Today he is responsible for the training for officers in permanent service of the Army and the Carabinieri, through a course of military and university studies aimed at obtaining a degree in Strategic Sciences, Law, Engineering, Medicine and Surgery, Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technologies or Veterinary Medicine.
