BANGUI 29 NOV 2014
FORCE COMMANDER ALLOCUTION – FAREWELL TO SPANISH AND ITALIAN CONTINGENT
Dear Spanish and Italian Comrades,
It’s time for you to go home, and we are here this morning to give you a sincere farewell closing the
period spent with you in Central Africa.
First I want to address to the Spanish contingent. I welcomed you on the 4th of June in the Police
Academy, where you have settled during your first two months. You know that you have appreciated
this rustic but autonomous base, and that the readaptation in Ucatex was not so easy. But moving here
was a good way to work closely together, and improve the efficiency of the Force. I want to stress here
how paramount was your contribution for the successes that EUFOR has experienced.
My initial gratitude will go to the SOCC. To be honest, I’ve not been surprised by your exceptional
professionalism, because it is a characteristic of such a unit. But I want to thank your sincerely for your
outstanding commitment, your fruitful and pleasant spirit, and the results you have achieved; many
times these results were hidden or unknown, namely to monitor the bad guys in the 3rd, but they have
been essential to the mission of EUFOR-RCA. Some special thanks to your commander, LTC LUCAS, who
has given the path with calm, seriousness and insurance. It is often said that a troop looks like his chief,
that’s particularly true here. You, JAVIER, have been the first responsible of such successes. You know
how I have always been confident with you and your soldiers, and always eager of your advice. I thank
you for all the great moments spent with you, from the patrols up to Bercail to the anniversary of the
Spanish Legion in September. I’ve particularly appreciated your serenity especially during the chaos
times that we have faced, to disrupt as early as possible the cycle of violence. I wish you a good return
to Alicante. Good luck to your successors to continue on the same track, to give to the next Force
Commander as many results as LTC LUCAS and his unit have provided.
To the IPU now, the famous Guardia Civil platoon remarkably commanded by LTN MORA ALBARRACIN,
you were the first non-French of the IPU to patrol into the 5th, and I have always been impressed by your
discreet but solid skills. In spite of the double rotation of French Gendarmes that you have witnessed,
you have always adapted yourselves with pragmatism to the spirit of the unit and to the ground, for
your first deployment in Africa. Each one of the 3 successive IPU commanders has had the same
appreciation of your platoon: operational, efficient and serene. Thanks to your ability to gain contact
with the population, I owe you the bulk of the early effects that EUFOR has reached in the first period
within the 5th. These early effects have created a wave of Force acceptance on which EUFOR-RCA has
ever surfed.
So, to the whole Spanish contingent, I would like to express my deep thanks and my congratulations,
you can be proud of the outcomes of this six month mandate, you have highly contributed to the
success of EUFOR-RCA.
Then I would like to express the same feelings to the Italian engineers, the last deployed contingent
within EUFOR-RCA, but not the least. I don’t say that because of the huge number of vehicles and
containers that you have brought from Italy. I don’t say that because your Italian pizza parties have been
highly appreciated by all the EUFOR soldiers, and have really challenged the others welfare rooms in
Ucatex. From an operational point of view, your expertise has been immediately recognized, thanks to
the visibility of your job but not only. Spurred on by CPT SCHIAVON that I personally thank, you have
worked very efficiently to improve the Force Protection of Ucatex, and all the Force enjoys it now. You
have worked also in support of EUFOR efforts in the 5th then in the 3rd, especially along the Yakite
channel and this work has been appreciated by the population, this has fed the EUFOR good reputation
among Bangui population. One regret, that we probably share: the possibility to set-up the famous TMS
bridge; this is a great challenge to your successor.
Finally, to all of you who are about to leave to Spain and Italy, I want to thank you once again sincerely,
for your contribution to the success of EUFOR-RCA. The diversity of your skills – SOCC, Gendarmes and
Engineers- represents the strength of EUFOR and allow me, as the Force Commander, to use the
appropriate tool pending the security situation. And I have always known that I could rely on your entire
availability and your high professionalism. I wish you some good holiday’s time with your family, you all
deserve it.
Brigadier general Thierry LION
EUFOR RCA Force Commander