The Polish military contingent in Chad has attained full operational readiness. It is the second largest group of the EUFOR mission there comprising 3500 soldiers from 24 countries. 

Slawek Szefs reports           

For the past several weeks engineering specialists have been preparing the ground, literally, to quarter the troops arriving from Poland. 

Colonel Dariusz Kacperczyk from the Operations Command of EUFOR's Multinational Battalion North, says work on the North Star Camp started in an empty field near Iriba: 'We've built the base from scratch. Now, we have 400 soldiers grouped in two places, because the chopper crews are in Abecha. Worth noting is that the Polish troops, as the only ones from the European contingent, will be stationed in air conditioned containers, something which cannot be overestimated in the climatic conditions of central Africa.' 

The Polish contingent reported FOC (Full Operational Capability) to the chief commander of the EUFOR mission in Chad, general Jean Phillipe Ganascia on Monday. What does this mean in practice, besides placing the Poles directly at the disposal of their French commander?  

Colonel Artur Golawski, editor of the Polska Zbrojna (Armed Forces) magazine: 'They can start their military activities, patrolling, providing security to humanitarian convoys. They are fully ready to even engage enemies, if necessary. But I hope they will not (have to) use arms at all. They are very well prepared, they are ready for combat. But their mandate, the rules of engagement are peacekeeping rather than conducting combat operations.'

September is a crucial period for the entire EUFOR operation in Chad and the Central African Republic. The mission takes place in an area with 12 refugee camps run by UN agencies and various NGOs which provide safety to some 350 thousand people. Six of these are in the immediate scope of Polish operations. Add to that 30 camps with 180 thousand resettlers to complete the picture.                          

Experience gained by Polish soldiers in numerous other international missions will surely be of help in Chad, given the difficult specifics of the African continent. However, the 63 Polish pilots and chopper crews who are part of the Multinational Army Aviation Battalion will be put to a special test, says Colonel Golawski: 'It's difficult to fly over a desert. The area is completely different than European landscape. It's harder to navigate, there's hot air which makes flying very different. You cannot fully use your mass or thrust on the chopper. You have to be a very skillful pilot. It's challenging for them.'  

The main tasks assigned to the Polish peacekeepers in Chad are monitoring their area of responsibility to ensure security to UN personnel in the region and relief convoys organized by the international community.