Lieutenant General John W. Nicholson Farewell From LANDCOM

Lieutenant General (Lt. Gen.) John Nicholson has relinquished command of NATO's Allied Land Command (LANDCOM) in Izmir, Turkey, following a ceremony held at the Headquarters on Monday, 15 February. Lt. Gen. Nicholson will go on to take command of the Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan.

During the ceremony, Lt. Gen. Paolo Ruggiero, LANDCOM Deputy Commander, and Major General (Maj. Gen.) Salih Sevil, LANDCOM Chief of Staff, addressed those in attendance, noting that during the leadership of General Nicholson, among other important achievements and missions, LANDCOM reached Full OperationalCapability (FOC) and played an active role in Trident Juncture 15, the biggest NATO exercise since the end of the cold war.

In his speech, Lt. Gen. Nicholson thanked all component Headquarters for their work and commitment, and also highlighted the support of Turkey as Host Nation.

After the ceremony, LANDCOM staff had the opportunity to say a personal farewell to the General, before the Honor Guard, consisting of NCO’s from different nations present in the Garrison lined the route as Lt. Gen Nicholson and his wife departed LANDCOM for the final time.