Today, the members of the Rangers Battalion celebrated the Day of the Unit, with a military ceremony held in the barracks “Ilinden”.
The Minister of Defense Radmila Shekerinska attended the ceremony and the Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Major General Azim Nuredin addressed the audience.
In his address, General Nuredin pointed out that the Rangers Battalion is a unit that in its beginnings was part of the Special Forces Battalion, which later transformed into a Special Operations Regiment. According to the new organizational structure it is at the rank of an independent Battalion and should be transformed into an Intelligence and Reconnaissance Battalion. In addition to that, the general also said, “Today, when we celebrate the 18th birthday, we can be proud of the success of the unit, the results and the awards received for the many successfully completed tasks, participation in missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as courses and training completion, and participation in training activities, at home and abroad. All this is evidence that confirms the importance of this unit for the Army and the state.”
In his address, The Commander of the Rangers Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Mentor Saiti, referred to the beginnings of the formation of this unit and stressed that they had successfully managed to overcome the challenges and to maintain the spirit, professionalism, loyalty, standards and above all the dignity of the Rangers, and urged them to continue on the path of success that they have traced for years as real and brave warriors, guided by their motto “ALWAYS STEP AHEAD”.
The Deputy Defense Minister Bashkim Hasani, State Secretary at the Ministry of Defense Dragan Nikolic and commanders of units stationed at the “Ilinden” barracks all attended the ceremony.
In the past period and on the Day of the Unit, the members of the Rangers Battalion (RB) organized a blood donation action and a humanitarian action in which they donated their food supplements to the children accommodated in the “Goce Delchev” boarding school in the village of Ljubanci. Rangers’ sports games and an open day in the “Ilinden” barracks were also organized, on which occasion the winner was awarded today.