IZMIR,
Turkey - U.S. Army Lieutenant General Darryl A. Williams assumed command of the
Allied Land Command during a ceremony held at the LANDCOM Headquarters, June
24, 2016.
Williams,
the third commander of LANDCOM, assumed command from Italian Lieutenant General
Paolo Ruggiero, who served as the acting Commander after General John W.
Nicholson relinquished command to assume duties as the Commander of the
Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan. Williams previously served as the
Commander of U.S. Army-Africa in Vicenza, Italy.
The Supreme
Allied Commander Europe, General Curtis M. Scaparrotti, was also part of the official
party for the ceremony.
The
Commander of Allied Land Command is one of the three single service commanders
subordinate to Allied Command Operations in Mons, Belgium. Williams will lead
LANDCOM in its mission to provide land expertise in support of Alliance land
forces’ capability, readiness, interoperability and standardization.
During a
crisis, Williams is responsible for leading LANDCOM in providing mission
command of NATO land forces in support of the Joint Force Commands to
accomplish the Allied level of ambition.
Williams said
the command must be ready for a crisis situation and help "ensure peace”.
"This is NATO's
most important weapon," he said.
To learn
more about Allied Land Command, go to www.lc.nato.int, like us on Facebook (@landcom) or follow us on Twitter (@landcmd).