Malta Independent Online
Thursday, September 22, 2011
It is envisaged that during this year alone no less than 62 members of the Armed Forces of Malta will be participating in crisis management operations in Georgia, the Gulf of Aden, Italy, Greece, Lebanon, the UK and Uganda.
The EUTM SOMALIA training contingent, based in Bihanga Camp, Uganda, is composed of nine multinational teams hailing from over fifteen EU countries. The mission which was mandated by the EU Council on the 25th of January 2010 operates within the framework of the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) in support of UN Security Council resolutions. The aim of this mission is to make a comprehensible and sustainable contribution towards the development of the Somali Security Forces through the provision of specialist military training to Somali trainees in a bid to provide the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) with a professional security force capable of supporting the Government’s stabilisation efforts in the country.
Following the first successful six-month deployment of three Maltese military instructors in April 2010, a second team was deployed to Uganda in January 2011. This second detachment was composed of infantry trainers from 1 Regiment, Armed Forces of Malta. Commenting on his team’s recent deployment, the national contingent commander, Warrant Officer 1st Class Mark Chircop, stated that he was proud to have represented his country on this important mission and that his participation provided him with an exceptional opportunity to put to good use his military knowledge and experiences accumulated over many years of service in the AFM. As in the previous tour of duty the AFM contingent formed part of a combined Maltese/Irish instructor team operating in Bihanga Camp, Uganda and were responsible for providing Somali non-commissioned officers with military training in infantry drills and tactics. To date over 2000 Somali soldiers have been trained at the Camp with an equivalent number expected to receive similar training over the coming year.
Today, the AFM will be deploying an officer, Capt Chris Attard to the EUTM Headquarters in Kampala, Uganda, as Personal Assistant to the overall Mission Commander. This is a first for the Force. A third AFM instructor team, which is currently being readied for a six month deployment, will also be departing in the coming days.
Somalia’s present woes started in 1991 following the fall of the Siad Barre regime, a repressive military leadership which had been in power for almost 22 years. The lack of governance and continued strife amongst warring clans in Somalia sparked an ever growing humanitarian crisis with hundreds of thousands of civilians seeking refuge both in neighbouring African countries and also in Europe. Furthermore, piracy originating from bases along its coast is estimated to cost the world economy around €13 billion a year in global trade. The influx of migrants from the region to Malta and the Island’s dependence on free and secure maritime trade routes have been the main motivators behind the country’s involvement in this mission.