Romanian General, the new Chief of Staff of Operation EUFOR ALTHEA

On Wednesday, May 17, Brigadier General Ovidiu Lungu (Romania) took over the position of Chief of Staff of Operation EUFOR ALTHEA from Brigadier General Zoltán Somogyi (Hungary). The handover/takeover ceremony took place in Camp Butmir Military Base from Sarajevo, in the presence of the Ambassadors of Romania and Hungary to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the EUFOR Commander, Major General Helmut Habermayer.

The new Chief of Staff assured the Commander of the European Union mission from Bosnia and Herzegovina of his commitment to fulfill the key objectives of Operation ALTHEA. "I am pleased with the cooperation relations with our partners in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Romanian participation in this European Union effort is consistent, and the professional performance of the Romanian soldiers is appreciated by their colleagues of the mission. Through personal dedication and, most importantly, through joint effort, we can contribute to maintaining stability in this region," Brigadier General Ovidiu Lungu said.

Prior to being appointed to this position, Brigadier General Ovidiu Lungu was the Commander of the 1st Mechanized Brigade "Argedava". He also served as the Chief of Staff of the HQ Multinational Division South-East and participated in four international missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

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European Union's Operation EUFOR ALTHEA in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) was launched in December 2004 under the mandate of the UN Security Council (UN Resolution 1575/2004). The mission succeeds the SFOR and IFOR operations, conducted under NATO command. Since 2012, EUFOR ALTHEA has been focusing on the training and the strengthening of the BiH armed forces’ capacity. The main objectives of EUFOR ALTHEA are supporting the European Union's overall strategy for BiH and providing for a secure and stable environment, especially through the support of public authorities and the joint and collective training of this country’s armed forces.

Currently, more than 1,100 soldiers from 22 contributing states are participating in Operation EUFOR ALTHEA: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Switzerland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey and Hungary.

The Romanian contingent participating in the European Union operation in BiH counts over 200 soldiers.

The Press Office