Meet our coordinator in Afghanistan

The role of a Senior Advisor in mentoring the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) is an integral part of the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission (RSM), and forms the backbone of its “Train, Advise, and Assist” (TAA) effort. Senior Advisors contribute their deep knowledge and experience in international crisis management areas, and provide the necessary upholding to the Afghan Security Institution (ASI). 

Since March 2016, Colonel Mihai Aurelian IOSIF, of the Romanian Gendarmerie, has been deployed in Afghanistan as Senior Advisor in the Ministry of Interior Advisory Group, within the framework of the Resolute Support Mission.

As Senior Advisor to the Afghan Ministry of Interior (MoI) Chief of Staff (CoS), Colonel IOSIF main duties are, inter alia:

• Implementing MoI’s Battle Rhythm by coordinating the MoI CoS’s activities with those of international embassies, multi-governmental entities, and non-governmental organizations;

• Advising the MoI CoS on:

            Gender and Human Rights;

            MoI’s Public Affairs;

            Managing the new and modern 119 Call Centre project;

            Developing Community Police Force policies;

            Outlining MoI Compound’s security and access procedures;

By attending the MoI’s Strategic and Ministerial Leader Boards, Colonel IOSIF provides evaluations and reports on the performance of the MOI’s CoS functional areas, as well as advice on strategic level initiatives, working closely with the RSM’s Staff to solve issues and concerns raised by the MOI CoS, especially in subjects such as the establishing of the necessary framework for the creation of the Canine Training Centre, and facilitating the attendance of junior and senior MOI personnel to foreign training programs.

Colonel IOSIF is also the European Gendarmerie Force (EGF) Coordinating Officer in Afghanistan, in charge of oversight of all activities performed by the different contingents working under the umbrella of the European Gendarmerie Force in Afghan soil.

Deputy Commander of the Gendarmerie Forces in Romania’s Hunedoara County, Colonel IOSIF is currently performing his third international deployment, attesting his profound understanding of TAA-type missions.

In August 2016, while on its third international deployment, Colonel IOSIF was awarded the United States Army Combat Action Badge (CAB), a badge awarded for active engagement with the enemy.

Colonel IOSIF is a major lynchpin for the Resolute Support Mission’s “Train, Advise, and Assist” program, a flesh-and-bone representation of the dedicated, experienced, highly-skilled Senior Officer who is able to cope with multiple responsibilities in dynamic environments, while at the same time upholding and propagating the NATO and EGF values, as well as the finest traditions of Gendarmerie.