New National Army contingent leaves for Kosovo (video)

CHISINAU, July 10, 2020 - The 13th contingent of the National Army leaves for Kosovo. On this occasion, today, a detachment ceremony took place at the Ministry of Defense, attended by Prime Minister Ion Chicu, the leadership of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff, diplomats and military attachés.

In his speech, Prime Minister Ion Chicu wished success to the new contingent prepared to represent our country in the peacekeeping mission and expressed his gratitude to all soldiers who, since 2014, have participated in Operation KFOR.

"In recent years, Moldovan soldiers have been deployed in various parts of the world, where wars have marked territories and destinies. That is why today, once again, we thank the more than 480 soldiers who took part in the Peacekeeping Mission in Kosovo. Undoubtedly, they showed a lot of courage, manhood and dedication ", Ion Chicu mentioned.

The Head of Government stated that the participation of the military in this operation is an important contribution that our country makes in consolidating international peace and security. In addition, it is a high esteem of the National Army, which is an efficient, sustainable and multilaterally equipped institution, as well as a proof of the success of the recent military reforms.

For his part, the Deputy Head of the Italian Embassy in the Republic of Moldova, Diego Randazzo, said that with our country`s request to participate in the Kosovo operation, Italy has significantly contributed to the deployment of National Army contingents in Operation KFOR, and the success of these efforts is the result of excellent bilateral cooperation. "The deployment of the 13th National Army contingent to the KFOR peacekeeping operation in Kosovo is a concrete contribution to the North Atlantic Alliance's efforts to stabilize the situation in the Western Balkans. Undoubtedly, your presence in KFOR demonstrates that the international community has confidence in your professionalism, which is very necessary to be part of this military mission, ”said Diego Randazzo.

It should be mentioned that in order to prevent the risk of contamination with the COVID-19 virus, the KFOR-13 herd was placed in strict quarantine for 14 days, being monitored daily by military doctors. At the same time, before being seconded, all 41 soldiers were tested at COVID, the results being negative.

The thirteenth contingent of the National Army consists of 41 professional soldiers, including a staff officer, seven engineers and a platoon of 33 soldiers, who will perform security missions and guard military and patrol objectives.

The Moldovan staff will be in Kosovo for six months, having been deployed to the Camp Vilaggio Italia multinational base in Pech.