EU Military
Committee
General Claudio Graziano,
in Spain
EMAD
On 4 February, Defence Minister
Margarita Robles held a working meeting
with the Chairman of the European Union
Military Committee (CEUMC), General
Claudio Graziano, during his official
visit to Spain. The following day, he was
received with honours at the Defence Staff
Headquarters. After signing the Book of
Honour, Graziano and Admiral General
López Calderón (CHOD) discussed,
among other issues, Spain’s contribution
to European Union missions.
The Chairman of the Military
Committee also delivered a lecture to
the students of the Armed Forces Staff
Course at the CESEDEN, and visited
the Operations Command (MOPS) at the
Retamares military base in Pozuelo de
Alarcón (Madrid), where he was received
by its Commander, Lieutenant General
Francisco Braco.
There, General Graziano had a firsthand
insight of the planning and conduct of
all the joint operations of the Spanish Armed
Forces and, more specifically, those carried
out within the framework of the European
Union. Finally, a videoconference was held
with the Spanish contingent in EUTM Mali,
the Marfil detachment (Senegal), the frigate
Reina Sofia and the Orion detachment,
the latter two of which are part of the
EUNAVFOR Atalanta operation to combat
piracy in the Horn of Africa.
EUTM-MALI
General Gracia: new head of the mission
SPANISH Brigadier General
Fernando Gracia Herréiz took
over command of the European
Union Training Mission in Mali (EUTMMali)
on 12 January, taking over from
Czech General František Ridzák.
The mission provides the Malian army
with military training
and advice on chain
of command, logistics
and human resour-
ce management, as
well as international
humanitarian law. The
Spanish General is
head of operations
of the Eurocorps,
the multinational unit
that is acting as the
mission’s headquarters this year.
During his speech at the change of
command ceremony in Bamako,
General Gracia highlighted his firm
commitment to “continue working
to maintain the links established
with the Malian civilian and military
authorities”. He also pledged to
continue working closely with the
Malian Armed Forces “so that they
can provide their country with a
secure environment that facilitates
Mali’s prosperity”.
The mission was launched in
2013 and is now in its fifth mandate,
which runs until
May 2024. This new
phase is intended
to build on what
has been achieved
over the past eight
years to help the
Malian Armed Forces
improve their military
structure and organi-
sation. This includes
an increase in capa-
EMAD
bilities and the possibility to conduct
training not only in Mali, but also
temporarily in the other G5 Sahel
nations (Burkina Faso, Chad,
Mauritania and Niger).
At the Council of Ministers on 22
December, Spain approved a total of
530 troops for this mission in 2021.
Alexander the
Great Award 2020
Spanish officer wins award
in Thessalonica
LIEUTENANT Colonel Juan Carlos Moreno Arenas, member of the Spanish
NRDC-GR
contingent at NATO Rapid Deployable Corps-Greece (NRDC-GR) has won
the Alexander the Great Award 2020.
This annual prize recognizes the superior performance, professional
excellence and significant contribution of Staff Officers and Staff Assistants to the
mission of NRDC-GR.
The ceremony was held at NRDC facilities in Thessalonica, following the
COVID19 protocols. The Spanish officer received the award from Lieutenant
General Dimitrios Koukkos, Commander of NRDC-GR.
April 2021 Revista Española de Defensa 23