Troops take part in Medal Ceremony in Rožňava (April 24) 103 soldiers who returned home from ISAF operation after their six month tour in Afghanistan were awarded commemorative medals by the State Secretary of Ministry of Defence of the SR Miloš Koterec and the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the SR Lieutenant General Peter Vojtek. Mr. Koterec and Lt.Gen. Vojtek appreciated professionalism and expertise the soldiers had demonstrated while performing the force protection tasks at the largest NATO base in Afghanistan. According to the State Secretary, what should be viewed as particularly significant was deployment of special operation forces’ unit tasked with the training and mentoring of the Afghan special police unit. ‘The effort they had put in resulted in interventions and actions leading to detection and disposal of illegally stored weapons, home made explosives and drugs. What we view as a remarkable success is the fact that a number of suspected persons were seized, including a Taliban commander,’ remarked the State Secretary. The Slovak Republic has terminated deployment of Special Operations Task Unit (SOTU); nevertheless, the Armed Forces have gained one of the most valuable capabilities, which they shall use during the next deployments in Afghanistan. ● The Tactical Exercise SPRING HARVEST, with the aim to test the readiness of the professional soldiers for deployment in the EUFOR ALTHEA operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina as members of the Liaison Observation Teams and the LOT Coordination Centre, took place during 17 – 19 April in the Training Unit of the military operations of the Training battalion in Martin. The exercise is a continuation of the WINTER HARVEST professional – tactical exercise, which took place in February this year. The exercise and the rest of the activities within the maintenance preparation of the LCC and LOT members significantly contributed to the harmonization of individual teams. The activities were the last joint training before the deployment to the EUFOR ALTHEA operation in May and in September 2013.
Improving Conditions for Sportsmen (April 26) The Minister of Defence of the SR Mar!n Glváč would like to enhance the effec!veness of the Military Sports Centre Dukla Banská Bystrica (MTC). A new organiza!onal structure to be implemented by 1 June 2013 should make the ac!vi!es of the Military Sports Centre transparent and efficient. ‘I would very much like to see the Military Sports Centre Dukla Banská Bystrica become a showcase for the Slovak sport. By introducing new categories in sport we would like to create more favourable background condi!ons for sportsmen,’ stated the Minister of Defence of the SR Mar!n Glváč on Friday. Within the framework of reorganiza!on, a number of control levels should be reduced and func!ons and !tles of individual sportsmen should be made transparent so as to eliminate their job classiÞca!on as professional sportsmen merely for the purpose of being paid a higher salary. ‘Our aim is to introduce a reward system that would be based on the outcomes reached by the individual sportsmen represen!ng Slovakia,’ explained the Head of Defence Department. In this context, a new categoriza!on of sports is under way and a dra% of future coopera!on between the Military Sports Centre and the Police Sports Club is being prepared. The ac!ng director of MTC Dukla Banská Bystrica Róber Kurčík announced that in the next few days he would submit a report on effec!veness of use of Þnancial resources already spent on comple!on of dockyard building works in Liptovský Mikuláš. The Minister Glváč made a promise to provide Þnancial resources needed to complete the dockyard building works. Such a promise had been previously given by Iveta Radičová, who did not allocate money for that purpose, though.
● The first planned inspection of the SLOVCON unit in the ISAF operation took place on 10 - 24 April. It focused on the logistics, personnel management, funding, training and performance of the SJ KAF, CSS MAT and professional soldiers at the NATO Headquarters in the ISAF operations. A member of the controlling board Colonel of the General Staff Daniel Zmeko stated: ‘The CSS MAT, CSS MAT ISAF – D 30, EOD team and SJ KAF units are the best in the entire operation. The foreign partners’ and the coalition units’ reactions, as well as the reactions of the local residents speak volumes for it.’ ● Treatment and dressing trauma injuries training for medical staff of the AF SR took place at the Division for Training, Education and Specialized Preparation of the Department for Specialized Medical and Veterinary Activities of the Surgeon General Office in Ružomberok based in Liptovský Mikuláš during 23 – 24 April. ● On 23 April, the first reconnaissance flight took place over the premises of the Stationary Communications and Information Systems Base (ZaSKIS) using the Mi- 17 helicopter from the Helicopter Wing in Prešov. The aim of the flight was to examine the possibilities of how to provide the intervention services by the ZaSKIS members in a difficult mountain terrain, especially in winter, in an expeditious and unhindered manner. The flights planning will continue so that the pilots gain the required experience in order to fly in a difficult mountain terrain. ● The current matters linked to the upcoming law amendment on civil service of the professional soldiers and the forthcoming changes in the professional soldiers’ welfare were the main topics of the social science seminar held at the Headquarters of the 2nd Mechanized Brigade on 25 April. The Chief of the Personnel Division Maj. Rastislav Jánošík clarified the issue of the Amending Law No. 346/2005 Coll. on civil service of the professional soldiers. During the second part of the seminar the Head of the Financial Security Office in Prešov Lieutenant Colonel Jozef Petrík together with the Head of the General Accounting Office Capt. Martin Škovránko presented the welfare system changes of the professional soldiers pursuant to the Amending Law No. 328/2002.
New Logo on the Anniversary (28 April) The Ministry of Defence SR celebrates the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Armed Forces of the SR with a new symbolic logo. The logo has got a circle shape and there are three soldiers in the middle of the logo. The circle stands for security and protection. The three soldiers represent stability, determination and integrity. It also symbolizes the past-present-future continuity. The logo has got two versions. One version has got a striking dark green background and the other has got a camouflage color silhouettes. ‘In the long term, the public has perceived the Armed Forces as one of the most trustworthy institutions. Therefore, I believe that we should pay attention to the 20 years of history of the Armed Forces.’ I believe that the new logo will primarily capture the attention of young people and motivate them to be responsible for the country’s defence and assistance to people,’ stated the Minister of Defence Martin Glváč. According to the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic Lieutenant General Peter Vojtek, the new logo represents stability of the Armed Forces, without which the Armed Forces would be unable to fulfill their mission. ‘It is important that the general public knows that the people can always rely on the Armed Forces in crisis situations,’ stated the Lieutenant General Vojtek. The celebration of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Armed Forces of the SR will culminate during the Armed Forces Day of the Slovak Republic on September 22.
● The members of the Military Council (MC) of the Land Forces Commander held talks on current tasks in the premises of the Command Support Battalion in Trenčín on 26 April 2013. The Land Forces' Commander of the Slovak Armed Forces Brigadier General Ondřej Novosad, who was in charge of the meeting, resumed the overall performance of the tasks by the Land Forces in the past period. He also informed the MC members of the about the conclusions of the Military Council of the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic.
The best Gunner comes from Michalovce
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(April 24) The third annual Contest of the Best Gunner of the Land Forces was held in the premises of the Simulation Centre of the Armed Forces Academy (AFA) in Liptovský Mikuláš on 22 - 24 April. Due to a need to cut down on finances, for the first time the contest was not held in the training area. ‘On the other hand, all the contestants were put on an equal footing this time. They could not complain about the different wind speed or other weather conditions that would have an impact on their shooting. For all of the 30 contestants, this is a new and useful experience,’ noted the Contest Director Lieutenant Colonel Andrej Staško. The contest was made up of two parts, i.e. the theoretical part and performance of individual firing tasks. Captain Roman Bobaľ from the self-propelled artillery unit in Michalovce became the Best Gunner of the Land Forces and won the Challenge Cup. First Lieutenant Slavomír Pristaš from the same unit and Captain Ľuboslav Havrilla from the rocket-launcher unit based in Rožňava won the second and third places, respectively. The Challenge Cup was handed over to the winner by Brigadier General Boris Ďurkech, the Rector of the AFA in Liptovský Mikuláš, in the presence of the Deputy Commander of the Land Forces Colonel of the General Staff Karol Navrátil, who greatly appreciated the performance of the gunners taking part in the contest.
eBULLETIN MO SR
Soldiers Help Extinguish Fire (April 25) Soldiers intervened in the grass and vegetation fire using helicopters in Starý Smokovec. The Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic appealed to the Regional Directorate of the Emergency and Firefighting Corps in Prešov for help. ‘Two Mi-17 helicopters with Bambi Buckets and a Tatra 815 vehicle with cistern were immediately deployed into the area. They shall remain there until it is necessary,’ stated the Minister of Defence Martin Glváč. The Armed Forces of the SR reserved the equipment from the Helicopter Wing in Prešov. The soldiers got also involved in extinguishing the fire last year. During March through May, they intervened in the area of Miľpoš, Ružomberok – Čebrať, and so far they got involved in the biggest forest fire in the area of Vyšná Boca, where they used up to 274 BAMBI Buckets, that is 548,000 liters of water.
April 22 - 28, 2013