Chief of Italian Army General Staff visits Hungary

The Hungarian chief of defence received the Italian lieutenant general on a courtesy call during his one-day official visit to Hungary with a delegation including Command Sergeant Major of Italian Army First Lieutenant Michele Romano.

The two sides exchanged opinions in an open and informal atmosphere about the prospects of tackling current and future challenges, and charted their common areas of interest, where cooperation and interoperability must be strengthened.

While at the military base known as Camp Croft, Újmajor, the Italian lieutenant general visited the multinational NATO Forward Land Forces Battle Group stationed in Hungary, in which some 250 Italian personnel are serving.

In greeting the Italian contingent, Lieutenant General Masiello praised the soldiers’ commitment and bravery. He emphasized that the army must be ready to fight for the homeland and act in its interest.

In the company of Brigadier General Balázs Szloszjár, Acting Commander, HDF Land Component Command and Major Botond Hetényi, the commander of the Hungarian contingent of the multinational battle group, the Italian military delegation headed by Lieutenant General Masiello visited the main sites of the Hungarian Defence Forces Central Military Training Area and Shooting Range.

During a static display, the guests gained a picture of the current state of the modernization of the armed forces in Hungary. Besides all the newly procured items of land equipment of the Hungarian Defence Forces – an arsenal ranging from combat vehicles to small arms –, they had the opportunity to see close up the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) and the water purification device of the Szentes engineer regiment, while the excellently prepared operators of the assets provided them with detailed information about the capabilities of the weapons.

The multinational NATO Forward Land Forces Battle Group (FLF BG) has been established in Hungary with the participation of Italian, Croatian, American and Turkish military personnel. The battle group reinforcing NATO’s eastern flank carries out training tasks and exercises in order to get ready for the conduct of high-intensity defensive operations.