Natale, Gen. Serino (Army): “visit the soldiers employed during the holidays”

This morning, the General of the Army Corps Pietro Serino, Chief of Staff of the Army, visited some of the men and women of the Armed Force on duty during the holidays in national operations and institutional presidential services in Rome, thanking for the work carried out to protect the community. Throughout 2021, the Army continued to employ about 7,000 Italian soldiers on the national territory in favor of citizens and local institutions. In fact, in over 50 Italian provinces, the activities of competition with the Police continue, from the fight against criminal activities to the prevention of possible terrorist attacks, to which is added, throughout the national territory, the support to the national health service to counter the effects of the pandemic emergency. In particular, the Army, in close coordination with the other Armed Forces, makes available all the capabilities in terms of health personnel, logistics personnel, means and materials for the execution of the vaccination campaign and the containment of the coronavirus. In just over a year, explains a note from the Army, with the launch of operations Igea, Eos, Minerva and the more recent Athena, launched on the initiative of the Minister of Defense Lorenzo Guerini, ordered by the Chief of Defense and directed by the Operational Command of Vertice Interforze, over 2 million swabs were carried out, 34 million vaccine doses distributed (over a third of those administered throughout the national territory) and inoculated, in the Army vaccination centers, of which 46 are still active. over 4 million doses. In addition, the use of mobile teams, made up of military doctors and nurses, was decisive, making it possible to extend the vaccination campaign even in the most remote inhabited centers and to reach the most elderly and fragile citizens. This vast use of resources – explains the Army note – was made possible thanks to the logistical autonomy, the ability to operate in emergencies in situations of risk, specific and intrinsic characteristics of the Army, as well as the widespread presence on the territory of the its units. Furthermore, in such a complex healthcare framework, over 3,100 Army soldiers are deployed in numerous missions under the auspices of the UN, NATO and the European Union, operating in international operations in the most critical areas of the world (such as Somalia, Niger, Mali, Libya, Latvia , Lebanon, Kosovo and Iraq) Last summer, the role of the Army soldiers intervened at very short notice, following the closure of the mission in Afghanistan, to restore the security conditions of the international airport of Kabul and allow the evacuation of local collaborators, through the air bridge established with Italy as part of the joint operation “Aquila Omnia”. To these commitments is added the deployment of specialized personnel for further international needs and the maintenance of operational readiness for the departments belonging to the NATO Rapid Reaction Forces. Among the other activities carried out on the national territory, the departments of the Engineers over the course of 2021, they carried out more than 2,400 reclamation interventions for the defusing and blasting of about 50,000 explosive devices and remnants of war (most of which dating back to the Second World War), some weighing hundreds of pounds, often in conditions of considerable complexity. Over the past 10 years, over 45,000 interventions of this type have been completed. These commitments are even more relevant if we consider that for each soldier in activity another is preparing to replace him and a third has just been replaced. Ensuring the correct cycle of preparation, use and reconditioning involves the daily involvement of over 45,000 soldiers. An all-round commitment that made by the # EsercitodegliItaliani, characterized by dynamism and a marked professional versatility, which allows the terrestrial component of the Italian Armed Forces to respond to the needs of the country in all circumstances. Even in emergencies, in fact, the Italian soldiers have shown a high level of preparation and professionalism resulting from the continuous training and development of new technologies that project the centuries-old history of the Army into the future cyber scenario, once again, in the role of protagonist.