"A piece of my heart"

The ceremony took place at a parade of the soldiers of the units belonging to the 19th German KFOR Contingent. Lieutenant General Karlheinz Viereck, Commander of the Bundeswehr Operations Command, handed over the command. In his speech he thanked the outgoing Commander Bund for his commitment abroad and wished good success to Brigadier General Grün as new Commander.

Numerous guests from politics, military and economy participated in the change of command ceremony, among them the President of Kosovo, Fatmir Sejdiu, the Commander KFOR, Lieutenant General Xavier de Marnhac, and the Deputy Commander KFOR, Major General Gerhard Stelz. The parade formation was directed by Lieutenant Colonel Thorsten Ludwig, Chief of Staff of the 19th German KFOR Contingent. The musical setting was provided by Army Band 12 from Veitshöchheim (Germany).

"A piece of my heart will stay here in the Kosovo," said Brigadier General Bund. He thanked the soldiers for their work and the responsibility demonstrated in the fulfillment of their mission. From the hands of Lieutenant General Viereck, Bund received the Bundeswehr Foreign Duty Medal and the Non-Article 5 medal of NATO. In his speech, Brigadier General Grün said that he "is deeply convinced that we have an important work here and that our mission is the right thing to do."

Currently Germany participates in the KFOR mission as the strongest troop contributing nation with approximately 2,670 soldiers – including the currently exercising Operational Reserve Force Battalion.

(Story by Captain Michael Schur)