Maputo, 27 Jul (AIM) – The European Union Military Training Mission in Mozambique (EUTM-MOZ) has called for the creation of a military administrative command in the Rapid Intervention Forces (QRFs), which will be responsible for expelling terrorists in some districts of the northern province of Cabo Delgado.
According to the commander of EUTM-MOZ, Marine Commodore Martins de Brito, speaking on Wednesday in Maputo, during a lecture on the theme “Contribution of the European Union Training Mission (EUTM) to the Defense and Security of Mozambique”, the administrative command will be responsible for managing the military equipment to be provided by the Mission.
“In addition to training and equipment, we are also advising the Mozambican Armed Forces (FADM) on the creation of an administrative command that will be responsible for managing these QRFs,” he said.
Currently, the FADM receive training from the European Mission in the branches of Command; Ground Combat; Maritime and Combat Services Support.
After setting up the QRFs, De Brito said, there is a need to have a body directly responsible for maintenance and monitoring.
“What we are creating is the action of the administrative command in the Army and Navy, which will be responsible for the rotation of these QRFs, and for the management of the personnel that will integrate the Forces in Cabo Delgado in the future”, he explained.
He also revealed that the QRFs should have the equipment by March 2024, noting that there are currently storage, distribution, control, and monitoring challenges.
“All these aspects end up with the participation of the Command Force, in the sense of providing guarantees and tools to those who will have this mission of being able to conserve and use this material”, he stressed.
In October 2021, the Council of the European Union decided to launch EUTM-MOZ for a more efficient and effective response in the fight against terrorism that has been plaguing Cabo Delgado since 2017,
Currently, the Mission has 161 soldiers divided into two training centers, one for commandos and the other for marines. Their mandate ends in September 2024.
The lecture was part of the Activity Plan of the Center for Strategic Analysis of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP).
(AIM)
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