Corps General Nicola Zanelli took over from Lieutenant General Gilles Hill
Today with a restricted ceremony due to the containment measures of the contagion from Covid-19, the General of the Corps of theItalian army Nicholas Zanelli assumed the post of deputy commander of the mission NATO Resolute Support in Afghanistan, taking over from the Lieutenant General Gilles Hilland British Army.
The handover took place in the presence of the US general Scott Miller, Mission commander.
General Zanelli confirmed that the commitment of the Italian contingent continues alongside NATO allies and partners. He also stressed the importance of being determined and cohesive in supporting the Afghan people and their national security forces to maintain the results achieved so far: "A duty due", he has declared, "towards the Afghan citizens and towards the brothers in arms of all the coalition countries who have fallen and injured in the long stabilization process of Afghanistan ”.
Le Italian Armed Forces participate in the mission Resolute Support, which began in 2015 following the closure of ISAF (International Assistance Security Force), with a contingent of about 800 soldiers. The mission, which differs from ISAF in the first place for being of the "no combat" type, is focused on training, advice and assistance in favor of Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and Afghan institutions and aims to improve their functionality and the ability to self-sustain.
In recent days, General CA Zanelli visited the Tactical Advice Assist Command West (TAAC-W), an Italian-led multinational unit, based in Herat, under the command of Gen. B. Alberto Vezzoli, Commander of the “Julia” Alpine Brigade of the Italian Army, which constitutes the bulk of the force.
General Zanelli, originally from the province of Reggio Emilia, after having attended the Military Academy of Modena, was assigned, as an officer of the paratroopers, first to the 2nd battalion "Tarquinia" and then to the 9th assault battalion "Col Moschin ”, Where he acquired the status of raider. He has participated in numerous operations including the "Airone" in Iraq, in 1991, the "Restore Hope"In Somalia, between 1992 and 1993, and the operation and the"Telic 1”In Iraq, in 2003. He attended the Joint Command & Staff Course in shrivenham, in the UK, and the master's degree in military studies at King’s College of London, city where he also held the position of Military Attaché at the Italian Embassy. First Commander of the Special Forces Command of the Italian Army, from 2013 to 2016, and then in charge of the Special Forces Operational Command, until 2019, he is Deputy Commander of the Army Land Forces Command. Together with the post of Deputy Commander of Resolute Support, also takes on the role of Italian Senior Representative as part of the same mission, previously held by Gen. B. Giorgio Rainò.