Revitalization of Former Military Repair Plant (September 5) A former Military Repair Plant in Nováky, which is subject to a long-term lease of 20 years to a strategic partner by the defence department, intends to extend its production capacity and create approximately 200 new jobs. The Company MSM Martin allows for a foreign partner to launch production. “I am glad that the strategic partner undertook to revitalize the company and managed to maintain employment and not only preserve jobs but even create new ones,” said the Prime Minister Robert Fico on the occasion of his visit to the plant. The Minister of Defence Martin Glváč confirmed that the current management took over the company MRP Nováky in a critical condition. „Our predecessors in the Strategic Defence Review even considered a possibility to wind up the company. That is why I am most glad that we managed to preserve the plant, that people did not lose their jobs and that inclusion of a strategic partner has proved to be an effective strategy,” he said. Department of defence selected a strategic partner MSM Martin in a public tender. The three criteria were set to evaluate the bids – the amount of a lease, the price for which stocks will be sold and the number of preserved or even newly created jobs. The MSM Martin joined the plant as a strategic partner in January 2013.
● A ceremonial parade was held in the 11th mechanized battalion in Martin on the occasion of a farewell to the soldiers deploying to perform tasks in ISAF military operation in Afghanistan. The Commander of the Land Forces of the SR Ondřej Novoslad stated that the 94 – strong contingent earmarked primarily for a force protection unit is fully prepared to perform tasks.
Cooperation with Poland (September 2) Coopera!on between the Slovak Republic and the Republic of Poland increased in the past year. The Minister of Defence of the SR Mar!n Glváč and the Minister of Defence of the Republic of Poland Tomasz Siemoniak concurred on that during the one-day working visit of the Minister Glváč to Poland. The fact that for the Þrst !me since 2008 a Plan of Bilateral Coopera!on has been executed stands a tes!mony to this posi!ve trend. “The Plan includes the areas and ac!vi!es in which we would like to further develop our coopera!on. In the Plan of Bilateral Coopera!on between the Slovak Republic and the Republic of Poland we focus on the speciÞc areas and par!cular Þelds like defence planning, coopera!on in building defence capabili!es or the joint training and exercises of the members of the armed forces,” stated Mar!n Glváč. “We discuss various projects within the V4 and I would say we are close to their implementa!on,” stated the Head of the Slovak Department of Defence. “The Minister Siemoniak raised an issue of a possible coopera!on in the Þeld of moderniza!on of the avia!on since the Republic of Poland has, just as the Slovak Republic, in its inventory also the Þghter aircra# MiG29,” he stated. During his stay in Poland, Mar!n Glváč took part also in the 21st Interna!onal Defence Industry Exhibi!on (MSPO) in Kielce.
The State Secretary in Lithuania
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(September 5) Prepara!on of the European Union Summit on the joint defence and security policy of the EU to be held in December was one of the issues discussed at the informal nego!a!on of ministers of defence of the EU countries in Lithuania. Slovakia was represented by the State Secretary of MoD SR Miloš Koterec. “In the !mes of a Þnancial crisis and newly emerging types of threats and challenges, in the !mes of a growing unpredictability and orienta!on of the most signiÞcant ally – the US – towards the PaciÞc region, it is high !me for the European Union to carefully consider the role it would like to play in the future in an interna!onal dimension and to determine op!ons to achieve such ambi!on,” he stated. Many of the member states emphasized the need to substan!ally enhance defence coopera!on and coordina!on between the EU and NATO.
● Head of the Language Institute of the GS AF SR Lt. Col. Patrik Adamec opened intensive language courses in English and French languages in Liptovský Mikuláš. Simultaneously, the language courses opened in the language wings of the Language Institute in Trenčín, Zvolen and Prešov. Altogether 142 participants will attend the courses. Their studies will be completed by a final exam in December. ● Soldiers of the German Bundeswehr and the engineering company Michalovce worked together while carrying maintenance of the cemetery in the area of the Memorial of the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps (ČSAZ) in Dukla. Jozef Rodák, acting Head of the Museum of Military History in Svidník, appreciated the joint effort of the Slovak and German soldiers in the time of the upcoming celebration of the 69th anniversary of the Carpathian – Dukla operation. ● In Skalka nad Váhom, which is the oldest place of pilgrimage in Slovakia, there was a social science workshop held on the occasion of the 1150th anniversary of St. Cyril and Methodius coming to our territory. The workshop was organized by the members of the Headquarters of the Training and Support Forces in Trenčín. The participants, together with chaplains Lt.Col. Stanislav Lipka (a catholic dean) and Lt. Marián Bodolló (a protestant dean), visited also the premises of a former St. Benedict’s Abbey in Veľká Skalka, where, in the 10th and 11th century, lived hermits St. Svorad and St. Benedicts, the first saints on the territory of a former Hungarian Monarchy.
Minister commenting on MiGs (September 3) Department of Defence headed by Ľubomír Galko consented to cannibalization of fighter aircrat MiG-29. As a result, there were only a few serviceable or functional aircraft and number of flying hours decreased as well, the failure rate of fighter aircraft increased and last, but not least, our country’s safety and nation’s security were jeopardized. “We have only recently found about the details on the condition in which the fighter aircraft were handed over to us from a document that was viewed as an integral part of the Subscriber Agreement, but in spite of this fact this document could neither be found at the Ministry nor at the Air Force based in Sliač,” informed the Minister of Defence of the SR Martin Glváč.
„Under the Subscriber Agreement the Russian party was bound to supply spare parts and ensure repair and maintenance in case of a breakdown or malfunction of a fighter aircraft. „This never happened. The former leadership gave consent to the dismantling of our fighter aircraft with the aim to form a pool of spare parts, hence ensuring the required numbers of operational and serviceable aircraft. No one in a leadership position would then insist on performance of the Subscriber Agreement,” said the Head of the Defence Department. He stressed out that the current leadership took the necessary measures and confirmed that currently the Slovak Republic has a sufficient number of fully operational fighter aircraft. „Protection of the airspace of our country is secured and so is our obligation or commitment within NATINADS system,” he explained. The current leadership will have to make a decision whether to make an investment in repairs and maintenance, which could have been provided for a price lower by several million EUR two years ago, and simultaneously to seek solution to the issue of protection of airspace of the SR. Causing a damage to a property owned by the state is an offence justifying commencement of criminal prosecution.
Competition putting Combat Skills to Test (September 4) The Air Force Command, Control and Surveillance Brigade in Zvolen organized a combat skills competition held in a mountainous terrain between Zvolen and Banská Bystrica. The competition took 24 hrs and put to a test the selected combat skills of individuals and teams, including but not limited to the practical skills and knowledge in the field of shooting and tactical preparation, topography, medical preparation, signals or engineer preparation. From start to finish, every participant had to carry a kitbag weighing minimum 10 kg. The Commander of the Brigade Colonel Miloš Mosný and the senior non-commissioned officer of the AF SR Vladimír Beluš avowed the ambition to get gradually involved teams from the whole Armed Forces. In the future, the competition might
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reach an international dimension, e.g. within the framework of the Visegrad 4 countries.
September 2 - 8, 2013