CAF delegation attended the JFC Naples Commander duty handover ceremony
Chief of General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces General Josip Lucic and Croatian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Ante Urlic attended from 5 to 6 October 2010 the duty handover ceremony of the Allied Joint Force Command Naples Commander between Admiral Mark Fitzgerald and Admiral Samuel Locklear III.
In his speech, Admiral Fitzgerald thanked all his colleagues in JFC for their cooperation and support in the establishment of stability and security in the region. He also noted that he was extremely pleased that, during his duty as a JFC Naples Commander, Croatia and Albania joined NATO.
At the end of the ceremony, Admiral Locklear thanked Admiral Fitzgerald on previous activities in Naples as well as on a successful military career. Admiral Locklear spoke about the work and responsibilities of JFC Naples Commander saying he was ready to start new duty in the best possible way.
During the handover ceremony Admiral Fitzgerald was awarded the Service Medal by the Secretary of State for the Navy, Defence Distinguish Medal from the U.S. Secretary of Defense and NATO Meritorious Medal from the NATO Secretary General.
On Tuesday, October 5, Admiral Fitzgerald during the reception for high guests particularly thanked General Lucic and Admiral Urlic for the hospitality during his visit to Croatia.
Commander of JFC Naples has always been an American admiral, who also served as Commander of the U.S. Naval Forces for Europe and Africa. As Commander of the JFC Naples, he is operationally responsible for NATO missions on the Balkan Peninsula, in Iraq and the Mediterranean, and as Commander of the U.S. Naval Forces he is responsible for U.S. naval forces operating in the Atlantic and Indian Ocean and in the Mediterranean and Black Sea.