"You are leaving for a really troubled country and therefore it is really important to understand in your hearts and souls the essential work you are doing. This will be the first deployment to Afghanistan to almost a half of you, so there must be some anxiety in your hearts," said Minister of National Defence Rasa Juknevičienė in the deployment ceremony of the Lithuanian peacekeepers to the mission of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, October 21.
"Our soldiers, you help make our world safer and more peaceful," R. Juknevičienė said. According to Minister, today the world marks the tenth anniversary of war in Afghanistan, the media is teeming with releases about bombings and deaths, but nevertheless, a great number of positive changes are also there in Afghanistan.
Chief of the Joint Headquarters Col Vilmantas Tamošaitis greeted the leaving troops and said he was sure they would complete their tasks successfully.
"You are the ones responsible for ensuring a gradual transfer of responsibility to Afghan people for their country", said Col V. Tamošaitis, and also whished to the families of troops patience and ability to support their loved ones.
"It is my pleasure to address you on the eve of this vital mission. We have two teams lined in front of us here today - Provincial Reconstruction Team and Police Operational Mentor and Liaison Team. I do not discriminate you as Lithuanians or Americans because you have undergone one training and you are going on one mission. You are one strong team," said Ambassador of the USA in Lithuania Anne E. Derse.
The deployment ceremony held in Independence Square of Panevėžys before the ISAF mission in Afghanistan was also attended by Povilas Vadopolas, Mayor of Panevėžys, commanders of units of the Armed Forces, families of the deployed peacekeepers.
In November the current rotation of peacekeepers in Afghanistan will be replaced by the 14th shift of PRT and the 3rd shift of the Police Operational Mentor and Liaison Team (POMLT) which trains local policemen of Ghor province under Lithuanians' supervision.
PRT-14 including approximately 150 troops, mainly from the 5th Territorial Unit of the Dainava Military District of the Lithuanian National Defence Forces, is commanded by Lt Col Eligijus Senulis. The team will take over coordination of provincial reconstruction process, and training of Afghan National Army units deployed in the province from PRT-13.
Lithuanians work together with Georgian, Japanese, US, Polish, Finnish, Bulgarian and Ukrainian representatives in Chaghcharan, capital of Ghor province.
POMLT-3 comprising 20 Lithuanian and US troops and officers of the Public Security Service under the Ministry of the Interior will be led by the Lithuanian Military Police Commander Lt Col Ričardas Pocius. POMLT-3 will continue training, mentoring and by other means contributing to the development of Afghan National Police.
The Lithuanian-led PRT in Ghor is a joint civilian-military mission, a part of NATO's ISAF that was launched in Ghor in summer of 2005. The main task of the mission is to help Government of Afghanistan to extend authority in the province, ensure security and create environment for provincial reconstruction. At present major attention is paid to the projects of training and preparation of Afghan National Security Forces under the new NATO's ISAF strategy in Afghanistan.
The main aim of POMLT launched in November of 2010 is to provide training and mentoring and by other means contribute to the readiness of Afghan National Police to complete their tasks.
Lithuania established a joint POMLT with the United States as an effort to intensify support to security forces of Afghanistan in its responsibility area, Ghor province, where the majority of local forces are police. Reconstruction in Ghor is ensured not only by the Lithuanian-led PRT, a part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, but also by the European Union Police Mission to Afghanistan which conducts its activity in coordination with the PRT.
Lithuanian military personnel are also deployed to the south of Afghanistan, Kandahar province, where a Lithuanian0led Air Mentor Team provides training for local helicopter pilots and technical maintenance specialists.
Lithuanian troops serve at ISAF headquarters in Herat and Kabul. Special Operations Forces Squadron is deployed in southern Afghanistan and a National Support Element coordinates provision to the entire Lithuanian military contribution in Afghanistan.
Currently there are approximately 260 Lithuanian soldiers deployed to Afghanistan.
POC - PIO for PRT-14 1st Lt Tomas Pakalniškis, cell phone 00370 657 61271.
