Ceremony and Medal Parade in EUTM Somalia

After presenting the EUTM Somalia medals, Col. Beary delivered a speech, in which he made special mention of those soldiers who had earned the EU medal for the second time, including the Hungarian soldiers currently serving abroad. The commander praised the work done in the mission, and reminded the troops that the Somalian National Armed Forces (SNAF) owe their success to the personnel in attendance too.

The EUTM Somalia has entered its last phase, the so-called cohesion phase where the soldiers are already working on company level. From now on the Hungarian trainers are tasked with coordinating company-level operations.

At the start of practices, the command group of the Somali cadet company receives the operations orders from the trainers. In what follows, they themselves start planning and later implementing the missions, while the trainers are mentoring the soldiers and if needed, intervene in the process. Concurrently, the would-be EOD technicians, combat life savers and radio operators of the company continue to participate in their trade training. They have already acquired the necessary knowledge, and now it is their turn to put what they have learned to effective use as one team.

According to plans, the mission will be relocated to Mogadishu during the next commander’s tenure, and Somalia will be assigned an increased role in training its own units.

The Hungarian trainers are nearing the end of their tour of duty in Uganda. With the present rotation, they are going to finish their work in Bihanga Training Camp (BTC), and will return to their families by Christmas.