EU Naval Force Mediterranean Operation IRINI change of command.
On July 19th 2024, Rear Admiral Stefano Turchetto relinquished command of EUNAVFOR MED Operation IRINI to Rear Admiral Valentino Rinaldi in front of General Robert BRIEGER, chairman of the EU Military Committee, by IRINI’s Headquarters in Rome in the presence of the Italian Under Secretary of State for Defense, Sen. Isabella RAUTI, accompanied by Admiral Giuseppe CAVO DRAGONE, Chief of the Italian Defense.
After three intense years, we can say that EUNAVFOR MED Operation IRINI is now in a phase of full operational maturity. IRINI is one of the most complex and significant EU military Operation under the EU Common Security and Defence Policy. The only international actor implementing the UN arms embargo on Libya, IRINI is effective, balanced and impartial. With ships, aircrafts, submarines, drones and satellites, the Operation also provide area surveillance in the Central Mediterranean monitoring Air and Sea Lines of Communications and strengthening maritime security on the southern border of Europe, in particular in the international waters in front of Libya, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
“In the 40 months since its launch in March 2020, IRINI became an important tool in European Member States’ hands towards the stabilization of Libya and the country’s peace process, upholding our European values. The UN-brokered ceasefire remains, however, very fragile and Operation IRINI is, and always will be, fully committed to play its part”, pointed out rear Admiral Turchetto during his farewell speech to his Men and Women deployed by 23 Nations at the Operation Headquarters in Rome and, for the last time, lined up in front of him.
Finally, addressing the distinguished audience of military and civilian authorities, the outgoing Operation Commander complimented Rear Admiral Rinaldi, declaring himself “honoured to hand the command over to such a skilled and competent Admiral that already served in the Operation as Force Commander at sea in 2023”. Rear Admiral Rinaldi will continue on the path marked by his esteemed predecessors, not only fighting the illicit trafficking of arms into Libya, but also supporting the disruption of the smuggling of oil from the African country and the illicit trafficking of migrants to Europe through the Central Mediterranean, secondary tasks of IRINI Operation.
