A welcome ceremony was held on Sunday 12 June 2016 at Luxembourg Airport for the members of the KFOR 48 contingent from Kosovo.
Colonel Alain Duschene, Deputy Chief of Staff, Colonel Yves Kalmes, commander of the military centre and warrant officers from the army and the military centre were there to welcome the members back to Luxembourg soil.
In the presence of parents and relatives of members of the contingent, Colonel Kalmes thanked the 23 members of the detachment for their commitment and congratulated them for their professionalism during the last four months in Kosovo.
KFOR was restructured in February 2010 to move into a "Deterrent Presence" phase. The first step, known as "Gate One", was to bring the workforce to 10,200 men whilst increasingly relying on intelligence and support capabilities. In March 2011, during the transition to the second stage ("Gate Two"), the force further decreased its workforce.
Since the move to Gate Two of the Deterrent Phase in March 2011, the ISR Luxembourg squad reports directly to the headquarters of KFOR. The squad is divided into two SRI sections, a command team and a maintenance team.
The aim of KFOR is to contribute to a safe and secure environment, as well as preserve the freedom of movement of all citizens, regardless of ethnic origin.
In early May 2016, Luxembourg Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, Étienne Schneider, announced that the government will be slowly withdrawing its participation in the NATO KFOR mission in Kosovo.
Photo by EMA
