7th HRVCON sent off to “Resolute Support”

The ceremony was attended by the Envoy of the President of the Republic, Maja Čavlović, the Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Damir Krstičević, the Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Drago Matanović and representatives of the units of the Ministry of Defence and of the Croatian Armed Forces.
Addressing the Contingent members the President’s Envoy Maja Čavlović underlined that the security of the country is no longer defended along the national borders but the global instabilities are countered at the sources. Every time we send off members of the Croatian Armed Forces to peace operations and missions we feel pride and gratitude; the Croatian soldiers have received  commendations from both the allies and partners for their contribution“.
Minister Krstičević expressed the conviction that the 7th HRVCON would continue the focussed and professional performance of the previous contingents, combined with the competence and credibility towards the allies and the local population of Afghanistan. “I am glad that this contingent is heading off to the important mission fully equipped with Croatian-made weapons and equipment. It is another proof of the Croatian success and an opportunity to prove ourselves at the international level and to promote Croatian national interests“.   
The Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces, Lieutenant General  Matanović stated that the members of the Croatian Armed Forces were recognised for their understanding and respect for any environment they have operated in and in Afghanistan. Working and living in international environments has brought the Croatian Armed Forces with invaluable experiences. With its partners Croatia contributes to the global peace and security, and demonstrates the dedication to the fundamental tenets of the international community.
The Commander of the 7th HRVCON, Colonel Željko Ljubas reminded of the demanding pre-deployment training over the past months during which its members demonstrated high motivation and togetherness as crucial for the deployment in an operation of the kind.
The Contingent has 98 members of the Croatian Armed Forces (five female officers), of which 28 members of the partner countries (18 members of the Army of Montenegro, six members of the Army of Macedonia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina).
The Croatian Armed Forces are to be deployed equipped with the rifle (the VHS assault rifle) from a Croatian manufacturer the (HS Produkt from Karlovac), in support to the Croatian military industry.
The members of the 7th HRVCON will take over the duty from the 6th HRVCON in the Train Advise and Assist Command – North (TAAC-N) in Mazar-e Sharif and in the Headquarters in Kabul. Alongside staff duties in the two commands, the members  of the 7th HRVCON will work as advisors to the members of the Afghan National Army, police and special forces, the protection forces and execute medical and military police tasks.
The members of the Croatian Armed Forces have been engaged in Resolute Support since  1 January 2015, continuing their contribution to Afghanistan after the completion of ISAF.
Since 2003 till the completion of the tour of the 6th Contingent as many as 5041 members of the Croatian Armed Forces (195 female officers) have been engaged in Afghanistan in ISAF and Resolute Support respectively.