Brunssum, The Netherlands – The Joint Force Command Brunssum (JFCBS) Command Group and staff attended a presentation on gender perspectives of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Alliance Theatre, Monday, 18th March.
You are fighting for your freedom, your values
The presentation was a combined effort by Dr. Carlos Antunez-Moreno from JFCBS, and Captain Volodymyr-Bohdan Yanush and Senior-Lieutenant Yana Petrova, both honored guests from the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Commander JFCBS, General Guglielmo Luigi Miglietta, welcomed the distinguished guest speakers in the spirit of International Women’s Day, which was celebrated last week. “Today we celebrate the invaluable contributions women give to NATO and to armed forces around the world,” General Miglietta remarked.
The presentation highlighted real-world ways that the integration of gender perspectives into military operations has acted as a force multiplier. As seen in Ukraine, the integration of women into a wide variety of leadership roles has enabled Ukrainian military forces to successfully resist a much larger invading force. The presentation was highly impactful and personal, as the delegation from the Ukrainian Armed Forces shared many of their own experiences and answered questions posed by the JFCBS staff. Regarding the war in Ukraine, S. Lt. Petrova concluded: “It is a war against human rights and women’s rights.”
The presentation and discussion with the delegation from the Ukrainian Armed Forces was also an important effort in the advocacy of NATO’s Women, Peace and Security agenda, allowing JFCBS Command Group and staff to better understand the importance of gender perspectives in military activity.
As the presentation came to an end, General Miglietta took the opportunity to thank the delegation from the Armed Forces of Ukraine. “You are fighting for your freedom, your values,” said General Miglietta. “These should be rights enjoyed by every person without fear of aggression or occupation from hostile nations” he concluded.