Slovak soldiers return from Cyprus (28 March) The members of the AF SR were welcomed on the ground of the Anti-Aircraft Rocket Brigade in Nitra after having fulfilled their tasks in the UNFICYP military operation. The Chief of the General Staff of the AF SR Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek, the Commander of the Air Force of the AF SR Brig. Gen. Miroslav Korba, the Ambassador of Cyprus Marios Kountourides, the military attaché of the Republic of Cyprus Lt. Col. Michalakis Shiaelos, the former Ambassador of the Slovak Republic to the Republic of Cyprus Anna Tureničová, the chief non-commissioned officer of the AF SR Sergeant Major Vladimír Beluš and other official quests have attended this event. The soldiers’ family members could not have missed this event either. The Chief of the General Staff of the AF SR thanked the soldiers and appreciated their hard work, which they had carried out in the peacekeeping operation in Cyprus. 86 members of the AF SR received medals for their commitment in the operation on this occasion.
The Armed Forces having achieved maximum (26 March) Despite difficult condi ons, Department of Defence managed to accomplish all the tasks set for the previous year. A er mee ng with the Minister of Defence Mar n Glváč, Chief of the General Staff of the AF SR Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek and the other representa ves from MoD, concluded so the President of the SR and Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces Ivan Gašparovič. ‘I am convinced that they will equally manage to keep to the plans devised for the future, ‘stressed the President. With the representa ves of Defence Department he discussed a course of ac on to take with respect to the budget, as well as the issues of par cipa on of our Armed Forces in the interna onal crisis management and cooperaon within V4 group. ‘I appreciate having the opportunity to discuss the issue of legisla on affec ng the professional soldiers and to address also the specific concerns raised,’ stated the President. As resumed by Minister Glváč, at the mee ng they also talked about the issues of domes c crisis management and legisla ve process ini ated by the present administra on. ‘We reviewed and evaluated our ac vi es at the Ministry throughout the past year and we raised the issue of military intelligence. Equally, we pointed out that we managed to conclude our effort aimed at introducing a comprehensive intelligence services act, ‘stated the Minister. The President was also informed of restructuring measures implemented by the present administra on in military plants and facili es. According to Lt. Gen. Vojtek, the Commander-in-chief of the AF SR is con nuously kept informed of all the major acvi es of the Armed Forces. ‘We place par cular focus on exercises and tasks ahead, ‘stated the Chief of the General Staff of the AF SR. He added that they talked with the President also about Afghanistan and the changes related to our mandate. According to the President, last year the Armed Forces managed to achieve maximum, given the adverse condions under which they have to operate. He appreciated the fact that our soldiers are highly regarded by our partners abroad.
● Trainings for shooters - operators of the armoured personnel carriers BVP- I and BVP II took place in Martin in accordance with the mission of the Martin Battalion training to prepare the team and the non-commissioned officers centrally for the entire Armed Forces. Training at shooting in still position and in motion was the culmination of the courses in the Military Training Area Lešť, which were organized by the members of the Combat Training Company. ● The recurrent training of the Military Police – Police service dog handlers’ course took place focusing on strengthening the conditioned response already built in military police service dogs during 19 -20 March 2013. The joint recurrent training took place in the area of the Military Police Unit in Prešov in Kráľova Lehota region and in the village of Hybe. The training was aimed at practical usage of the military service dogs in real situations and the premises of the Children’s home in Králova Lehota and those of the Primary school in the village of Hybe were used. The Police service dog handlers prepared a presentation for children as well as a visual demonstration of the usage of the military police service dogs, the explosion detection and capture of a fleeing offender by a service dog. ● Farewell ceremony for the Chief of Staff of the Base of Stationary Communication and Information Systems, Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Matúš before leaving the AF, took place on the occasion of his professional duty completion, with the participation of the Commander of the Unit Colonel Ľubomír Gacko, the deputy Commander Lieutenant Albert Vajány and the members of the Base of Stationary Communication and Information Systems in Trenčín on 25 March. The Commander of the Base of Stationary Communication and Information Systems, Colonel Ľubomír Gacko thanked Lieutenant Colonel Matúš for his long-time work. ● The representatives of the Liaison Observation Team donated plasticine, crayons, notepads, coloring books, chalks and other kids stationary to children of the nursery in Čajnice in Bosna and Hercegovina. The representatives of the 2nd team, the First Lieutenant Vladimír Šatka and the Sergeant 1st Class Tomáš Hric, based in Foča handed in the donation. Their decision to donate was driven by the difficult situation of the local children. Čajnice is situated 130 km South-East of Bosnia's capital Sarajevo bordering with Montenegro. The nursery is one of a kind in this region and there are 38 children attending it. ● Brig. Gen. John Dolan, the Commander of the Kandahar Airfield Base awarded NATO medals to 88 members of the Slovak contingent in the ISAF operation in the Fest Tent Airbase area KAF in Kandahar, Afghanistan on 25 March for their exemplary fulfillment of the tasks and extra cooperation. 27 members of the coalition units were awarded Commemorative medals of the Minister of Defence of the Slovak Republic for their participation in the military operation. ● The Commander of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force Gen. Chao Liu appreciated the member of the Military Police MSG Marcel Fraňo for his excellent one year activity in the Military Police International Unit as his engagement in the UNFICYP operation is coming to an end. Six Slovak soldiers from the rotating Slovak contingent were awarded in March 2013.
Farewell ceremony in Brussels (27 March) The Chief of the General Staff of the AF SR Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek met with the Representative of the Permanent delegation of the Slovak Republic to NATO, the Ambassador František Kašický, in Brussels on Wednesday. As the mission of Mr. František Kašický as the Representative of the Permanent delegation of the Slovak Republic to NATO has come to the end, the Lt. Gen. Vojtek appreciated his activity and presented him with the 3rd degree Badge of Honor. He also thanked Mr. Fratišek Kašický for an exemplary cooperation and wished him every success in the future.
Session in Bratislava The 21st meeting of a sub-committee TF3 EDA MAWA (Task Force 3, European Defence Agency, Military Airworthiness Authority) for airworthiness was held in the premises of the MoD SR. Besides the representatives of the Military Aviation Authority of MoD SR (MAA), also the representatives from the 10 member states of EDA MAWA took part in the meeting. The aim of the negotiation was to finalize the European Military Airworthiness Requirements defining the standard and uniform European military requirements EMAR 66, posed on issuance of certificates of technical qualification of repair and maintenance technicians of military aircraft; and the requirements EMAR 147 and EMAR M, posed on organizations providing education and training aimed at maintenance of military aircraft. Head of the MAA of MoD SR Ing. Jozef Dunaj, under whose auspices the negotiation was held, greatly appreciated the progress achieved and expressed his belief that the early issuance of EMARs by the European Defence Agency (EDA) will create conditions for securing continuity of their national implementation, which is a commitment made by the Ministry of Defence of the SR.
NATO membership contributing to enhanced security
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(29 March) The Slovak Republic commemorates the 9th anniversary of our accession to the North Atlantic Alliance. ‘Obviously, we can only conclude that our membership in NATO contributed to the enhanced security of the SR. Security is an essential prerequisite for investments and to an increasing prosperity of the society as a whole. Strength of the Alliance rests on mutual confidence of its member countries. As for Slovakia, membership in the Alliance is still viewed as the top guarantee, ensuring safety in the case of military aggression, ‘said the Minister of Defence of the SR Martin Glváč. ‘Collective defence facilitated reduction of the combat capabilities designated for defence of the territory, as well as significant downsizing of the troops, which opened a way to the professional army based on voluntary service in the armed forces. The professional army may not be cheaper, nevertheless, the level of quality it offers is higher and it can better serve its purpose, be that the tasks of collective
defence, participation of our soldiers in the crisis management operations abroad or support of public authorities and local government bodies in Slovakia, e.g. in the case of floods or other natural disasters,’ said the Minister. However, there are certain commitments and obligations we have to meet, resulting from our membership in NATO and primarily linked with the principle of collective defence. The member countries jointly recognize their collective responsibility for maintaining security and stability in the world; they jointly face the threats and challenges and protect their common interests. Reflecting the changing security environment and interests of the Slovak Republic, the Armed Forces of the SR are being transformed into the agile expeditionary units, readily deployable and sustainable in a broad swath of spectrum of operations, thousands of kilometers from their homeland, in close cooperation with the allies. ‘Lessons learned from the operations and multinational exercises with the participation of
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coalition partners, as well as from the engagement of members of our Armed Forces in command structures of NATO forces are continuously exploited within the defence planning cycle and utilized to review the longterms plans of development of the Armed Forces of the SR,’ emphasized the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek.
March 25 - 31, 2013