At the invitation of Admiral Giuseppe Cao Dragone, Chief of the Italian Defence Staff, General Saïd Chanegriha, Chief of People’s National Army Staff, began an official visit to Italy, starting 1st October 2024.
Upon his arrival at Rome International Airport, General Chanegriha was welcomed, with the accompanying delegation, by Admiral Inspector Gino Mazzei, in the presence of the Algerian Ambassador to Italy.
This visit is part of the strengthening of cooperation between the People’s National Army and the Italian Armed Forces.
Issues of common interest will be discussed on this occasion, the Algerian Ministry of Defence said in a statement.
On the second day of his official visit to Italy, General Chanegriha visited Wednesday the historic monument “Altar of the Fatherland” in Rome, where he laid a wreath of flowers in front of the Memorial of the “Unknown Soldier”.
Subsequently, the Algerian Chief of Staff went to the headquarters of the Italian Defence Staff, where he was welcomed by Admiral Giuseppe Cao Dragone. The welcoming ceremony began with the playing of the national anthems of both countries followed by the military salute presented by a military formation at the entrance to the headquarters of the Italian Defence Staff.
General Chanegriha had a long discussion with Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone. The two parties discussed the state of cooperation between the armies of the two countries and exchanged views on current international and regional issues.
General Chanegriha expressed his thanks and gratitude to his host for the invitation extended to him to visit Italy, while hoping that this visit would be a further step towards consolidating bilateral military relations.
He further expressed his satisfaction with the quality of Algerian-Italian military cooperation and his deep confidence in the willingness of both parties to realize the common will of the leaders of the two countries to build a comprehensive strategic partnership, contributing to promoting security and stability in the region
The discussions were then extended to the military delegations of the two countries.
At the end of this meeting, the two parties exchanged symbolic gifts, before General Chanegriha proceeded to sign the guestbook of the Italian Defence Staff.
In the afternoon, General Chanegriha met with Lieutenant General Luciano Portolano, Secretary General, National Director of Armaments at the Italian Ministry of Defence.
During this meeting, General Chanegriha reiterated his deep gratitude for the warm welcome he and the accompanying delegation received, and his complete confidence in the ability of both parties, particularly thanks to their considerable potential, to develop a common vision to address current security challenges.
Then General Chanegriha went to the headquarters of the Joint Operational Command, where he held a meeting focused on bilateral cooperation activities and ways to further strengthen them, in the service of peace and security in the Western Mediterranean basin in particular, and in the world in general.
In this context, General Chanegriha praised the quality of bilateral relations and expressed his wish to see them strengthened and expanded to new areas of common interest.
The second day of the visit ended with a meeting extended to the delegations of the two countries and a visit by General Chanegriha to the Headquarters of the Joint Operational Command, where extensive explanations were given to him on the components and operational missions of this Command. (Source & Photo © Algerian Ministry of Defence)
