Chief of Slovak Defence Staff in Indianapolis
In his speech at the ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of cooperation between the SVK Armed Forces and the Indiana National Guard on 16 May, SVK CHOD Lt Gen Milan Maxim underlined this special partnership. According to him, the 20-year-long and successful cooperation was most visible during the first phase of the SVK Armed Forces’ transformation process prior to Slovakia’s entry into the North Atlantic Alliance. The second phase was characterized by preparation and joint deployment of the partner countries’ units in Afghanistan. The ceremony in Indianapolis, the capital of Indiana, was attended by Mike Pence, Governor of Indiana, Maj Gen Martin R. Umbarger, Adjutant General of the Indiana National Guard, Senator Tom Wyss, Peter Kmec, SVK Ambassador to the USA, and Maj Gen Martin Babiak, SVK Defence Attaché to the USA. Governor Pence presented Gen Maxim with a special resolution of the Indiana General Assembly to commemorate the 20th anniversary of cooperation. ● On 28 April 2014, SVK President temporarily conferred the historical title of “Prešov Mechanized Brigade” (PREŠOVSKÁ MECHANIZOVANÁ BRIGÁDA) on the military components of the 2nd Mechanized Brigade Prešov, with effect as from 30 April 2014. To mark this occasion, the HQ staff held a military ceremony on the premises of the 2nd Mechanized Brigade on 19 May. ● On 20 May 2014, members of the Military Police Directorate attended a shooting training exercise, using the SER 75 D COMPACT 9mm pistol, at Lipovník Garrison's shooting range.
Common themes with Norway
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(24 May) The SVK Ministry of Defence is commi ed to developing defence coopera on with Norway, especially in the field of EOD and by sharing military training areas. This was confirmed by SVK Minister of Defence Mar n Glváč, following a mee ng with Norwegian Minister of Defence Ine Eriksen Søreide. “I'm pleasantly surprised at the range of topics we broached. Our Norwegian counterparts are most welcome to use our cu ng-edge military training areas, whether that be MTA Lešť, TC Zemianske Kostoľany or Interna onal Centre EOD Trenčín,” said the head of the SVK MOD. Ministers Glváč and Søreide discussed regional defence coopera on, referred to in the Northern countries as NORDEFCO, with Norway being its member. “We can share exper se par cularly from joint procurement projects,” explained Minister Glváč. The Norwegian Minister of Defence noted that when it comes to bilateral coopera on, both countries have a good experience working in the field of EOD. “We also discussed the issue of exchange courses and exercises,” she said. In this respect, Minister Glváč reminded that Norwegian troops are coming to exercise at MTA Lešť later this August. He went on to say that Norwegian soldiers had already gained some experience at MTA Lešť. The last me they had exercised at MTA Lešť was as part of Exercise Village in 2012. Also on the agenda was the Agreement Prohibi ng Cluster Muni ons. Norway is one of the leaders in this issue on the interna onal scene. The discussions also centred on the actual situa on in Ukraine. Minister Glváč congratulated his Norwegian counterpart on the recent appointment of Maj Gen Kris n Lund as UNFICYP´s Force Commander, who had become the first woman ever to be appointed Commander of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus: “In UNFICYP, we have a total of 157 service personnel and we are the lead country of Sector 4. I am firmly convinced that our coopera on there will be successful and that the new commander can rely 100 per cent on our soldiers,” he said. During his working trip, the Minister also held talks with members of the Standing Commi ee on Foreign Affairs and Defence in the Stor ng (Norwegian Parliament).
● Chief of Staff Col (GS) Vladimír Kubáň, SVK Land Forces Headquarters (SVK LF HQ), received defence attachés accredited in Slovakia at the SVK LF HQ on Thursday, 22 May 2014. He briefed them on the purpose, structure and main tasks of the SVK LF. The defence attachés became acquainted with the concept of preparation and training in furtherance of the set priorities for the SVK LF, the upcoming reorganisation and equipment modernisation, following the conclusions of the Strategic Defence Assessment. ● A military meeting was held in the presence of main Military Police (MP) officials and commanders of subordinated units at the premises of the Military Police Directorate on 21 May. Those attending the meeting were lectured on the current issues, such as the SVK MOD and Defence Staff Crisis Management – managing the state in crisis situations other than the time of war and the state of war, or the basic procedures of the SVK Interior Ministry's Migration Office on working with refugees and asylum-seekers. The meeting then continued with the quarterly task performance evaluation across the MP. ● From 19 to 30 May, a training course for inspectors from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) member states is being held at the Training, Analytical and Supply Centre (TASC), CBR Defence Facility Čereňany. The training course, which covers detection and decontamination of toxic chemical agents, is attended by 52 specialists from 22 OPCW member states. They will gain valuable experience from the training in a contaminated area as well as from taking and analysing samples. ● Based on the decision of the Open Skies Consultative Commission of the OSCE, Slovakia as the lead country carried out, in cooperation with the Republic of Poland, a joint observation flight under the Treaty on Open Skies. From 12 to 16 May 2014, this joint mission was conducted over the territory of Ukraine aboard a leased, certified An-30B surveillance aircraft of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The 2,064 km long flight was focused on the Western part of Ukraine. All procedures to ensure the preparation and conduct of the flight were aimed at obtaining aerial photographs, which are to be made available to a broad range of experts. ● From 28 April to 20 May, theoretical preparation for the specialized part of the OR-6 training course was held at the detached medical facility in Liptovský Mikuláš operating under the Section of Training, Education and Specialized Preparation, Specialized Medical and Veterinary Services Division, Surgeon General’s Office Ružomberok.
CREVAL testing team
(21 May) Tasked with evaluating the readiness of the declared 2nd Mechanized Brigade (2nd Mech Bde) to NRF 2015, the Combat Readiness Evaluation (CREVAL) team conducted what was phase 1 of its assessment in Michalovce on 21 May. As part of this, the inspection team, led by Col Zoltán Iboš, checked the equipment of all soldiers earmarked for the declared unit and listened to the readiness report by Commander 2nd Mechanized Squadron Capt Peter Tvaruška. The CREVAL inspectors focused on checking the completeness of equipment, material and documentation. The evaluation was supervised by NATO observers from Greece and Bulgaria. CREVAL will continue on 24 and 26 June at MTA Lešť with the evaluation of squadron-sized tactical shooting exercise. Upon its completion, the unit will be on stand-by throughout 2015 and ready to be deployed in line with the requirements of the NRF Commander.
Rock climbing at Lešť
(22 May) The Lešť Training Centre's Rock Climbing Facility hosted the 2nd Rock Climbing Competition for members of the SVK Armed Forces and non-Defence agencies. MTA Lešť brought together representatives of military units, firefighters and rescuers from the Interior Ministry, and personnel from the Mountain Rescue Service. Of all military units, the Mechanized Battalion Levice, CBR Defence Battalion Rožňava and Training Centre Lešť had brought in the highest number of participants. Just as in 2010 so also in 2014 the climbing event was dominated by Lt Anton Suchý from the High Tatra Mountain Rescue Service. Of the SVK Armed Forces personnel, Capt Igor Lišaník, CBR Defence Battalion, ranked best. The best among women was 1st Lt Zuzana Vivodíková, Training Centre Lešť, just ahead of Cpl Vladimíra Kopčanová, Mechanized Battalion Levice.
Lt Gen Milan Maxim in the EU Military Committee (20 May) During the EU Military Committee's meeting in Brussels on 20 May, Lt Gen Milan Maxim, Chief of the Defence Staff, Slovak Armed Forces, declared a SVK force contribution to the Immediate Reserve (IR) under EU EUFOR ALTHEA. He alerted the attention of his partners to the still volatile political situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and informed the EUMC on earmarking a SVK Armed Forces unit for the IR, EUFOR ALTHEA, to be on stand-by from 1 May to 31 December 2014, a move approved by the Slovak government. Hervé Ladsous, Under-Secretary General for the Department of UN Peacekeeping Operations, briefed during NATO Exercise TRIDENT JUNCTURE 2015. on the preparations underway for the UN The next EU Military Committee meeting at peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic (CAR). The V4 Chiefs of Defence signed a CHODs' level will be held in Brussels on 12–13 November 2014. common letter to co-jointly certify the V4 EU BG
eBULLETIN MoD SR
May 19 - 25, 2014