Kuzmina’s Gold for Slovakia and Dukla (February 9) Biathlete Anastasiya Kuzmina won the gold medal in the women’s 7.5 km sprint at the Winter Olympics in Sochi on 9 February. The member of the Slovak national team and the club VŠC Dukla Banská Bystrica finished ahead of Russia’s Vilukhina, who took silver, with Semerenko of Ukraine claiming the bronze medal. Kuzmina successfully retained her title from the last Olympics in Vancouver. The Minister of Defence Martin Glváč congratulated the gold medalist. „Nastya has proved that she belongs to the world’s elite biathletes. Her gold medal is a huge success not only of our Military Sports Centre, but above all, of the entire Slovakia. I guess she couldn’t wish for a better gift to her 30th birthday that she will celebrate this year,” said the Head of the Defence Department. A. Kuzmina has been an athlete of the club VŠC Dukla since 2009. She is also scheduled to start in the pursuit race on 11 February, in the individual race on 14 February, and in the mass start race on 17 February. On 19 February, she will start as a member of our mixed relay, and on 21 February she will compete in the Women’s relay.
● On 31 January 2014, in the presence of the Second Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the QArmed Forces of the Slovak Republic Major General Pavol Macko, Colonel of the General Staff Ján Žarnovický handed over the command of the Combat Service Support Brigade (CSSB) to his successor Colonel Jozef Ševčík. On this occasion, the outgoing commander of the brigade Colonel Žarnovický was awarded with the Commemorative Badge of the Commander of the Training and Support Forces 1st Grade. He was appointed as Commander of the Office of Logistic Support of the General Staff of the AF SR as of 1 February.
Evaluation of the Year
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(February 6) On the occasion of the evalua on of the training year 2013, Ivan Gašparovič, President of the SR and the Commander‐in‐Chief of the Armed Forces of the SR, appreciated the soldiers’ professionalism, and the upgrade of military equip‐ ment, which will enable our Armed Forces to work even more effec vely in the future. At the same me, he appreciated the effort to balance the budget of the Armed Forces. „I am pleased that the Armed Forces have started the process of stabiliza‐ on. The work has started to be done with perspec‐ ve to its possible impacts in the future, and I am really glad that even the government now sees that the constant reducing of the Armed Forces’ budget is not the best course to take. A er all, our commit‐ ments to NATO do not allow us reduce the budget anymore, “stated the President. Equally, he pointed out: „When it comes to opinions on our soldiers and their service in missions, the Alliance’s repre‐ senta ves express only the highest praise. “ The Minister of Defence Mar n Glváč in his evalu‐ a on of the training year 2013 appreciated the con‐ tribu on of the Armed Forces within the interna‐ onal and domes c crisis management. What he views as the most important is that the armed forc‐ es stop sinking into a financial slump. „What I view as a top priority task is that we stop cu ng finances to be spent on moderniza on of the equipment and armaments. The figures reflec ng the last year’s development indicate that we have been successful.” The Minister Glváč is determined to con nue the moderniza on of the equipment to improve condi ons for soldiers, which is what he considers to be one of the top priori es. “I feel that the year 2014 will be a milestone in this respect since we are going to launch large procurement projects.” The Chief of the General Staff of the AF SR Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek also stressed the improved condi ons in our armed forces. “I can only conclude that we can see a posi ve shi in many fields. We procure new equipment and launch new projects. I am posi ve that we will manage to further improve technology and equipment in our armed forces.” The Chief of the General Staff pointed out that the year 2013 will also be marked as a year of tragic losses in the armed forces. “The past year was actu‐ ally one of the most drama c in the history of the AF SR. Three soldiers died in missions and the oth‐ ers were seriously wounded. S ll I am proud to say that our soldiers performed their tasks excellently, be that home or in missions abroad.
● On 5 February 2014, at the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the SR in Bratislava, the Chief of the General Staff Lieutenant General Peter Vojtek handed over symbolic cheques in a total amount of EUR 15 926 in funds raised by the NATO Charity Bazaar to the representatives of the Club of Hope, a civic association based in Bratislava, and Sina, a centre of integrating activities based in Nitra. The NATO Charity Bazaar is a non-profit organization associating 34 countries including Slovakia. Its aim is to raise funds in support of various charities in Belgium and elsewhere around the world. ● On 4 February, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Miloš Koterec met with the representatives of the Slovak Soldiers’ Association headed by the newly elected chairman Col. (Ret.) Tomáš Švec. At their meeting, they discussed the information on the last session of the Association and the issues of social security and medical care of soldiers and related laws. The State Secretary appreciated the mutually beneficial cooperation between the Association and the Ministry of Defence, namely in terms of working towards effective solutions. The Slovak Soldiers’ Association has nearly two thousand members and clubs working in thirty towns. ● In Rožňava, the Chemical, Biological and Radiological Defence Battalion and the Rocket Launcher Battalion practiced closed combat training. The joint training was aimed at improving knowledge and skills of professional soldiers responsible for close combat battles in units. In the first stage, instructors placed major focus on methodology of techniques of individuals, in the next stage the participants trained in pairs to conclude the training by mastering the defence techniques, with a subsequent shift of focus on elimination of an adversary.
Humanitarian Aid (February 3) The Slovak soldiers serving at Kandahar Base completed distribution of humanitarian aid to the local population. Altogether 233 sleeping bags, 250 field bottles and the same number of three-piece kitchenware, as well as 500 first-aid kits were distributed among both the truck drivers delivering material to the base and the other Afghans working for the base. The donated material comes from the supplies distributed to Afghanistan by the Ministry of Defence of the SR in cooperation with the Centre of Ecumenical and Pastoral Services in the AF SR and AC SR. The humanitarian aid comes from supplies of the Ministry of the Interior of the SR. The first-aid kits were procured from funds of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the SR and funds of the Centre of Ecumenical and Pastoral Services and the Diaconia of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (ECAV) Slovakia.
ISAF Advisory Team (February 4) After SOAG unit, which provides advice to the Afghan special operations unit, another one of the units declared as a contribution of the SR to ISAF, Afghanistan, reported full operational readiness. Having completed the last stage of the training on the Afghan territory, the Slovak Mobile Strike Force Security Forces Advisory Team reports to be ready to start providing advice to the Afghan rapid response unit. Thirty three members of SFAT team joined in January their fifteen colleagues from the forward group operating in Afghanistan since November the last year. The complete unit assembled on 15 January on the site of deployment – a forward base in the province Zabul. In the operation, the advisory team is subordinated to the 2/2 Infantry Battalion RAMROD. The Slovak Commander is Lieutenant Colonel Štefan Acsai.
Winter Survival Training (February 7) Members of the flying personnel of the Helicopter Wing Prešov practiced in the Low Tatras how to survive under severe winter conditions in a mountainous terrain in the case of an emergency leave of a helicopter. Pilots and mechanics mastered the technique of movement in a winter terrain and gained skills necessary to overcome obstacles. They also improved their practical military climbing skills. To demonstrate physical and psychological resilience under stress, they performed tasks under conditions of limited visibility, growing fatigue and sleep deprivation. At the same time, soldiers practiced providing aid to an injured colleague, night bivouacking in a forest, setting fire and preparing food under austere conditions. The flying personnel must undergo one winter and one summer survival training within two years.
eBULLETIN MoD SR
February 3 - 9, 2014