Early in the morning of Thursday 29 March, the Finnish flag was lowered for the final time at EUFOR HQ. After 14 years of unbroken representation in the peace-keeping missions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the small ceremony marked the formal withdrawal of the Republic of Finland.
At the small ceremony, presided over by Commander EUFOR Major General Martin Dorfer and Brigadier General Kallio, members of EUFOR Troop Contributing Nations and the Finnish Defence Forces stood in silence as the Finnish flag was ceremonially lowered and presented back to Brigadier General Kallio who is Chief of Operations in Army Command in Finland.
In his speech, the Brigadier General said that it has ‘been a great honour to have served in EUFOR, which has been responsible for safe and good conditions in BiH’. Over the 13 years that Finland has served as part of Operation ALTHEA, 600 Finnish military personnel have deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Major General Martin Dorfer, COMEUFOR, wished the final 2 members of the Finnish Contingent safe travels home saying: “I extend our thanks to the government and people of Finland for the contribution your Defence Forces have made contributing to the success in BiH in maintaining the safe and secure environment. Their presence will be missed.”
