Pedro Morenés was accompanied by the Chief of the Defence Staff, Admiral Fernando García Sánchez. The ceremony was also attended by the Minister for Defence of Mali, Houbert Coulibaly; the Minister for Defence of Germany, Ursula von der Leyen; the Minister for Defence and Sport of Austria, Gerald Klug; and the Chairman of the European Union Military Committee, General Patrick de Rousiers, among others.
After nine months in charge of the EUTM-Mali mission, General Alfonso García-Vaquero Pradal has handed over the command to the German general, Franz Xaver Pfrengle, Chief of the Eurocorp Staff. General García-Vaquero took over command of the mission on 24 October 2014 from the French general, Marc Rudkiewicz.
In his own words, General García-Vaquero highlighted the international coordination and acknowledged the difficulties and major challenges posed by this mission. During his command, the EUTM-Mali mission trained 1,200 Malian military personnel and re-trained another 800.
For his part, after the ceremony, the Spanish Minister for Defence underlined the professionalism of the Spanish troops and insisted that their work is fundamental for stability in the African country and for the security of the people of Spain. "The security of Spain starts here, or even further afield, wherever our way of life may be put in jeopardy".
EUTM Mali
The European Union Training Mission in Mali was set up in February 2013 with the aim of helping improve the military capacity of the Malian Armed Forces, in order to guarantee security and the sovereignty of the country under the control of the civilian authorities. This mission forms part of the comprehensive approach of the Common Security and Defence Policy of the European Union to tackle the situation in Mali and in the Sahel.
The mission is currently made up of 541 military personnel from 25 nations (23 of them European), to which Spain has been the main contributor with 163 personnel. Following the handover, the Spanish contingent will be reduced to 110 personnel, deployed in Bamako and Koulikoro, to become the second leading contributor after Germany.
The participation of the Eurogroup on this mission will provide greater visibility as a tool at the service of the Common Security and Defence Policy of the European Union.
EFE