Casablanca hosted the final foreign stop of Italian destroyer Luigi Durand de la Penne in the 2018 training campaign for 123 second class cadets from the Naval Academy of Livorno.
After stops at Cartagena (Spain), Dakar (Senegal), Accra – Tema (Ghana) and Casablanca (Morocco), the Luigi Durand de la Penne is now sailing towards Portoferraio, from where it will then return to Livorno.
The Italian Consul General, Pier Luigi Gentile, accompanied Commanding Officer Armando Paolo Simi in visits to the Casablanca civil and military authorities. They expressed their appreciation of the ship’s presence at the port, and hoped that visits could be repeated more often in the future.
On the evening of 13 September, there was a touching ceremony of the lowering of the flag on board, along with a recital of the Preghiera del marinaio (sailor’s prayer) before one hundred and fifty guests including representatives of the armed forces, the diplomatic and consular corps, military officials and the Italian community. It was followed by a reception featuring Italian specialities. A commemoration ceremony was held in front of the monument to the fallen in the courtyard of the Italian Consulate the next morning, which was also attended by students of the ‘Enrico Mattei’ Italian school in Casablanca.
Certain training activities were also organised for the students during the break, including a student exchange with students from the Moroccan Ecole Navale de la Marine Royale. The consulate then organised a brief conference on board attended by the Consul, the Head of the Italian Trade Agency (ICE) office, Daniela Cosentini, the Secretary-General of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Morocco, Giovanna Perrotta, and the Enel Green Power SpA Country Manager, Werther Esposito. The students were given a presentation of the various activities of the foreign offices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Italian Trade Agency (ICE) and the Chamber of Commerce, along with an overview of trade relations between Italy and Morocco and the activities and investments of Enel Green Power SpA. The final events included a mass celebrated aboard by the ship’s chaplain and the parish priest of the Italian community in Casablanca.
