General Mauro Del Vecchio, 43 years of service to the State, dies

''I express my sincere condolences for the passing of General Mauro Del Vecchio, former senator of the Democratic Party in the XVI legislature". With these words, the President of the Senate Ignazio La Russa announced the death of the retired general and senator Mauro Del Vecchio, born in 1946, a rifleman, who died today at the age of 79, after 43 years spent serving the Defense and Italy. As an officer of the Italian Army, La Russa recalls in the note, Del Vecchio had distinguished himself in numerous international missions and, later from 2005 to 2006, as a General of the Army Corps he had also been commander of the NATO forces in Afghanistan in the ISAF operation. He was subsequently appointed to lead the Joint Operations Command. He was able to combine his extraordinary military preparation with a strong institutional sensitivity. "To the family, friends and all those who knew and esteemed him, my most heartfelt condolences, both personal and on behalf of the Senate of the Republic", concluded the President of the Senate. Senate. Messages of condolence arrived from all the institutions as soon as the news spread and also bounced on the various websites of the military corps. The president of the Chamber Lorenzo Fontana recalls how Del Vecchio led "several missions with passion and commitment in the service of the country. An esteemed parliamentarian and excellent officer, he always stood out for his skills and his human and institutional values. I join in the grief of the family and express my closeness to the Italian Army and his colleagues".

The message of condolence from the Minister of Defense Guido Crosetto was particularly heartfelt and personal: "An exemplary officer and respected parliamentarian, he represented with honor the Italian Army, the armed forces and the entire Defense in the most complex and delicate theaters, always distinguishing himself for his balance, competence and spirit of service". Thus the Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto. "Commander of the Italian contingent in Kosovo, of the NATO Rapid Reaction Corps, of the ISAF mission in Afghanistan and, finally, of the Joint Operations Command, he held with firmness and vision - continues Crosetto - some of the most prestigious and delicate operational roles. To the extraordinary professionalism he was able to combine a profound humanity, a refined culture and an authentic sense of the State, which made him a point of reference for generations of military personnel, for the political world and for the entire country. His leadership , his integrity and his dedication will remain an example for all of us and for future generations. To his family, colleagues, friends and all those who knew and esteemed him, my most heartfelt condolences, on behalf of myself and the entire Defense family. To God, Mauro". Condolences were also expressed by the Undersecretary of Defense, Senator Isabella Rauti: "I express my closeness, in this moment of pain, to his wife Anna Repellini Del Vecchio, to his family and friends", wrote the senator.

Life

Mauro Del Vecchio was born in Rome on June 7, 1946. He attended the military academy in Modena and then became lieutenant and captain of the 8th Bersaglieri Regiment, then commander of the 1st Bersaglieri Battalion La Marmora. It was with the Bersaglieri Brigade Garibaldi that he began his peacekeeping missions abroad in the role of brigadier general, in Bosnia in 1997 taking over from General Agostino Pedone in the Multinational Brigade West; and then in 1999 for the KFOR mission in Kosovo and Macedonia. Experiences that earned him a promotion to division general. From February 2004 to September 2007 he was in command of the Italian Rapid Reaction Corps of NATO. He was commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan from 2005 to 2006 in the context of the ISAF operation. From September 2007 to March 2008 he was head of the Joint Operations Command. Then from 2008 to 2013 his political adventure: he was elected senator of the Democratic Party in the Lazio constituency, he entered the Defense Commission and the OSCE delegation. In 2023 he married fashion journalist Anna Repellini for the second time in Milan.