Citizens can undergo voluntary military preparations
(26 August) The Government of the Slovak Republic has approved the project of voluntary military preparations.
Citizens, undergoing a 12-week-long training, will gain basic knowledge and skills necessary to perform tasks of the SVK Armed Forces and the crisis management. After completion, they will be enlisted in the active reserves or will have higher chances to be employed in the security services of the Slovak Republic. “The pilot project, containing a group of 150 persons, should start at the beginning of 2016. It goes without saying that the applicants for this kind of training must fulfill requirements set by state,” stated the SVK Minister of Defence, Martin Glváč, and added that the voluntary preparations project called for several act amendments. Citizens, undergoing the voluntary military preparations, will receive a sum of €375, upon which – according to the agreement between the SVK MoD and the SVK Ministry of Finance – no tax will be imposed. The SVK MoD will provide them with free accommodation and boarding, equipment, compensation of travel expenses, as well as other benefits in the field of social and health insurance. “Those enlisted in the active reserves, will, of course, receive other benefits as well,” added the Head of the SVK MoD. He explained that to have the opportunity to mobilize the active reserves in a time of peace means to change the constitutional law. Voluntary military preparations will take place at Martin-based Training Battalion. Besides fulfilling the admissions requirements set by state, the applicants will have to hand in a written declaration that they are neither members, nor sympathizers, nor supporters of extremist groups. During the 3-month-long training, the citizens will be protected by the Labour Code and their employers will not be allowed to dismiss them. ● On 29 August SVK Minister of Defence Martin Glváč congratulated Matej Tóth, a race walker, on his historical success. The sportsman from the Military Sport Centre Dukla Banská Bystrica has become the winner of the men’s 50 kilometres race walking world title at World Championship in Beijing. „We have the first World Athletics Champion in the history of the Slovak Republic and I am proud to say he is a member of our Military Sport Centre. I extend to him my heartfelt congratulations,” said SVK Minister of Defence Martin Glváč.
71st anniversary of Slovak National Uprising
(29 August) The SVK Minister of Defence, Martin Glváč participated in the commemoration ceremony and the ceremonial gathering, taking place in Banská Bystrica on the occasion of the 71st anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising (SNU). The celebrations, as the tradition goes, were held at the SNU Memorial. “The Slovak National Uprising is undoubtedly one of the most important events of our history, since at that time, the Slovak nation managed to unite and resist the Nazi machinery. It is our duty to annually pay tribute to those who fought for us and our freedom,” stated the SVK Minister of Defence. The celebrations in Banská Bystrica were commenced by a flyover of the SVK AF fighter aircraft. The participants in the ceremonial gathering could observe dynamic demonstrations and static displays of military equipment. The celebration in Banská Bystrica was graced with the presence of Andrej Kiska, President of the Slovak Republic and Commander-in-Chief of the SVK Armed Forces; Peter Pellegrini, Chairman of the National Council of the SR; Róbert Fico, Prime Minister of the SR; and Lt Gen Milan Maxim, Chief of the SVK General Staff. Martin Glváč observed the 71st anniversary of the SNU already on Friday in the town of Pezinok. In his speech, he talked about parallels between the events the Slovak Republic went through more than 70 years ago and those the country experiences today. He did not forget about the young who are often not familiar with the concept of the SNU. “It is very important to commemorate the Slovak National Uprising and other significant moments in our history and to educate the younger generations on them in a proper way,” he added. The SVK MoD State Secretary, Miloš Koterec participated in the commemorative ceremony held on the occasion of the 71st anniversary of the SNU on 27 August at the SNU Square in Bratislava.
● On 24 August, SVK Minister of Defence Martin Glváč attended the atypical session of the National Council. Together with Robert Kaliňák, Juraj Draxler, Peter Kažimír, Peter Žiga and Peter Pellegrini, he faced the inscrutable questions posed by the children attending the Comenius Children’s University during the Question Time. The schoolchildren have taken their seats in the parliamentary benches for the 12th time, since this is traditionally a culminating point of the summer educational programme open to the children from all over Slovakia. „The role of the armed and security forces is to suppress the potential risks within the international policy to the lowest possible extent. To this end, we invest more into defence and the soldiers undergo more training in comparison with the past. We are doing our best to prevent the threat of war in Slovakia and this region,” assured the Minister his audience. ● On Thursday, 27 August, a ceremonial parade was held on the premises of Dukla barracks to mark the military retirement of Chief of the Military Office of the President of the Slovak Republic (MO PSR) Lt Gen Marián Áč. The ceremony was opened by Col Miroslav Ištván, Commander of the Guard of Honour of the President of the Slovak Republic. After the Order of the SVK President was read out on the occasion of the Constitution Day and the 71 st anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising the parade continued by awarding military medals of Chief of the MO PSR and military medals of the SVK CHOD to the selected members of the unit. Lt Gen Marián Áč introduced his successor Col Vladimír Šimko. After the parade came to an end, Col Vladimír Šimko, accompanied by Lt Gen Marián Áč, was shown round the unit’s premises. ● On 6 - 26 August, the members of the air traffic services of the combined wing Sliač underwent specialized training at Sliač Air Base. As part of training, the support company and the airfield construction company repaired the airfield’s hard surfaces APN N1 and APN S and a taxiway (TWY) leading to the hangar Vítkovice. They replaced cement concrete panels, repaired potholes, and applied crack sealing and filling techniques associated with cement concrete pavement systems, revitalized the damaged surfaces and renewed the horizontal marking.
Slovak soldiers use S-300 system for the first time in Bulgaria
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(27 August) Soldiers of the SVK Armed Forces for the first time participated in a combat live fire exercise, firing of the S-300 anti-aircraft missile system, which was held at the Bulgarian shore of the Black Sea. “For the first time, our Armed Forces had the opportunity to perform what they have only been training so far. I would like to congratulate them, as well as the Bulgarian soldiers, on achieving such good results,” stated the SVK Minister of Defence, Martin Glváč. He emphasized that we will also invite the Bulgarian Armed Forces to participate in Slovak exercises, so the soldiers can practise cooperation especially in the field of Land Forces. The Minister of Defence of Bulgaria, Nikolay N. Nenchev appreciated the progress the Armed Forces made during the exercise. “The level of readi-
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ness is truly high, nonetheless, I believe we will never be forced to engage the S-300 system,” he said. The Chief of the SVK General Staff, Lt Gen Milan Maxim expressed his satisfaction with the results of the combat live fire exercise: “I was not afraid that the soldiers would not be prepared enough, but some problems with the equipment might still occur. Therefore, I am glad that the maintenance procedures we have been following for 24 years were appropriate and everything works as it should,” he emphasized. 53 professional soldiers of Nitrabased Anti-Aircraft Brigade took part in the combat live fire exercise taking place in Bulgaria. The Training Area at Cape Shabla is large enough for such kind of an exercise, which saw altogether 1 400 soldiers.
Air Show SIAF 2015 (30 August) The biggest international air fest in Slovakia, which ended on Sunday at Sliač Air Base, saw more then 140 000 visitors. They had an opportunity to watch both static displays and dynamic demonstrations by 720 participants from 14 countries of the world. The main trophy - Best display Smik trophy for the best flight demonstration went to PC-7 Team and F/A-18 of the Swiss Air Force. The award of the SVK Air Force Commander for the best flight demo went to the Polish MiG-29, while the prize of the Slovak Aviation Agency for the best demo was awarded to the Bell 429 helicopter of the SVK Ministry of Interior. The prize of the SIAF 2015 Flight Director went to Mustang P-51D. This year, it has been for the first time that the spectators took a vote on the best static display. The Slovak MiG-29 received the most votes. The static displays were evaluated also by the special commission, with the Belgian aircraft C 130 Hercules being proclaimed as the best. The SVK MOD shall in the weeks to come conclude an agreement that would enable the establishment of a unique training centre in Europe. Currently, the negotiations on industrial cooperation are being held with the Black Hawk helicopter manufacturer. This information was provided by the SVK Minister of Defence Martin Glváč after the ceremonial opening of the Slovak International Air Fest 2015 at Sliač Airfield. The new training facility should serve not only for our pilots but should also be utilized by the Allies within the MATC project. According to Caroline M. Vandedrinck, Sikorsky Aircraft Vice President for Europe, Russia and Central Asia, Sikorsky shall, under the framework agreement that is to be concluded in the nearest weeks, supply to the SVK MOD the industrial materiel, to include the state-of-the-art flight simulator UH-60M Black Haw and other training materiel. During the Slovak International Air Fest SIAF at Sliač Airfield, the negotiations between the Slovak and Swiss parties on a lease of Gripen fighter aircraft continued. “We are ready to hold further discussions and to search for solutions,” stated Miloš Koterec, the State Secretary of the SVK MOD. “We have been discussing several options and it is our goal to select the best solution,” he added. On Friday, 28 August, the media representatives were given a chance to fly in C-27J Spartan aircraft, which will soon be a part of the SVK Armed Forces’ inventory. Procurement of the two Spartan aircraft is, after the lapse of twenty years, one of the biggest modernization programs in the history of our Armed Forces. Prior to the Air Fest, the joint exercise of the United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force and SVK Air Force was held at Sliač, presenting the two HAWK jet trainer aircraft from the RAF 100 Squadron, which will celebrate its own centenary in two years. For the SVK party, the aircraft MiG-29 and L-39 participated in the exercise. “The exercise is beneficial for the both parties involved. It presents a unique and unparalleled opportunity to share skills and experience. We also practiced conduct of an aerial combat and flying in groups, and the pilots were provided with an opportunity to fly as mixed crews,” said Brig Gen Miroslav Korba, Commander of the SVK Air Force. The BAE Systems Hawk 200 could also be seen at SIAF 2015.
August 24 - 30, 2015