The commander of Allied Joint Force Command Naples in Italy,
U.S. Navy Admiral James Foggo, visited Bosnia and Herzegovina, May 6, 2019, to
affirm NATO’s commitment to further support their Euro-Atlantic integration.
Foggo visited with members of the Presidency of Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Šefik Džaferović and Željko Komšić, the BiH minister of defence, Marina
Pendeš, chief of joint staff Armed Forces of BiH, Lieutenant General Senad
Mašović, U.S. Ambassador to BiH, Eric Nelson, commander of NHQSa, U.S. Army
Brigadier General Marti Bissell and her staff.
"NATO is committed to continuing a strong partnership with Bosnia-Herzegovina
and to furthering our cooperation and interoperability,” said Foggo. "My visit
today reinforces the importance of this country to NATO and to the Western
Balkans … NATO is grateful for the long-standing contributions by
Bosnia-Herzegovina to peace support operations across the world, not only with
NATO but also with the European Union and United Nations. Your contributions
are critically important to our efforts and contribute to our collective
security and stability.”>
Throughout the visit, Foggo discussed defence reform, the
BiH-NATO partnership expansion, the Partnership for Peace program and successes
of the partnership as it continues to progress. Additionally, Foggo stressed the importance of modernization and
interoperability of BiH forces.
"Improvements provide your armed forces with capabilities
that can be used to assist civilian authorities in responding to natural
disasters at home, and to contribute to international peace and security
missions abroad,” said Foggo. "Modern armed forces depend on adequate resources
to be effective and in return the armed forces provide their own citizens with
the peace and the security framework needed for the country’s economic growth
and prosperity.”
Bissell echoed the JFC Naples commander’s sentiments.
"Throughout my tenure as commander of NATO Headquarters
Sarajevo, I have seen firsthand the commitment of the armed forces
participating in Operation RESOLUTE SUPPORT mission in Afghanistan and fighting
terrorism in the fight against ISIS,” said Bissell. "The partnership between
this country and NATO is continuing to flourish, and while there is still work
to be done, we are excited for the possibilities in the near future.”