He Is Legend (August 30) Defense Minister Martin Glváč personally thanked and bid farewell to the Deputy Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Jaroslav Vývlek, who decided to leave the military. Glváč acknowledged Vývlek´s professionalism, outlook, human attitude shown to his subordinates and a true enthusiasm for the military way of life. The meeting was preceded by an official farewell ceremony attended by the MoD´s delegation led by the Head of the MoD´s Office Peter Novotňák and the Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek, who called Lt. Gen. Vývlek “a true military legend”. The official act was also used to appoint the new Chief Petty Officer, Sergeant Maj. Vladimír Beluš as a replacement for Sergeant Maj. Richard Fabricius, who leaves for the NATO International School in Oberamergeu, Germany, where he will command three Petty Officer courses.
Sliač Thunderstorm
(September 1-2) On weekend the SIAF 2012 International Air Fest welcomed tens of thousands of aircraft and aerobatics enthusiasts in Sliač. Flights of L-29 and L-159 aircraft started the seven-hour long show on both days; followed by historical aircraft and two MiG-29AS fighters dogfighting in the sky. The Italian national aerobatics team Frecce Tricolori came in low at 3 PM, followed an hour later by the Slovak L-23 aerobatics team Očovskí bačovia (the Shepherds of Očová). Judging by the visitors´ interest, Frecce Tricolori were among the top attractions of SIAF 2012, preceded only by the Russian MiG-29M2 fighter, and, of course, the
● The 19. rotation preparing for the Afghanistan ISAF crisis management operation underwent a two-week training in the Military Missions Training Center (VJVM) in Martin. The keypersonnel were divided into two separate groups - the NSE group and the guard unit. Following classroom lessons the training peaked in a two-day on-hand exercise based on reallife duties performed at Entry Control Point (ECP) 5. ● On Thursday, August 30, 2012 members of the Trenčín
Training and Support Command (TSC) held a parade commemorating two historical milestones of the Slovak nation the Slovak National Uprising and the adoption of the Slovak Constitution. “Soldiers - among them volunteers who had responded to the call to arms - fought against unfavorable odds and defended typical Slovak values: freedom, independence, truth and justice,” said Col. Ján Marek, TSC´s deputized Chief of the Staff. ● On Tuesday, August 28, 2012 the 2nd stage of the delivery of Land Rover DEFENDER 110 SW vehicles to MoD was concluded. The vehicles were delivered within the frame of the “small off-road vehicle” project to the 9994 Nemšová military garrison. To the day a total of 60 vehicles were delivered along with one spare part kit 1/20 for 55 vehicles. The automobiles are stored and secured the 9994 Nemšová military garrison; the necessary documentation under the valid legislation is being processed, and the vehicles are being prepared for ceremonial handover to the designated MoD units. ● On Tuesday, August 28, 2012 the UNFICYP Command
U.S. B-52 strategic bomber, the landing of which on August 29, 2012 at the Sliač military airbase was personally observed by Defense Minister Martin Glváč. Present were also the Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek and the Commander of the Slovak Air Force Gen. Maj. Martin Babiak. The landing itself was a logistical nightmare and had required several months of preparations – aircraft of this size (length 49 meters, wingspan 56 meters) has special landing requirements: the runway must withstand its considerable weight and must be of a sufficient width and length. The U.S. bomber took the longest rest at the Sliač base among all of SIAF 2012 participating aircraft - due to its gigantic size, it had to arrive first and leave last.
Days of (Slovak) Glory (August 28 - 29) Last week was dedicated to the celebrations of the 68th anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising (SNP). On Tuesday a ceremony commemorating the events of August 1944 in Bratislava was held on the Square of SNP, attended by the Prime Minister, Members of the Parliament, government ministers - including Defense Minister Martin Glváč - , representatives of the Diplomatic Corps, state administration and municipalities, war veterans and other guests. Slovak Armed Forces were represented by the Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek. Defense Minister Glváč stated that compared to SNP celebrations in Bratislava in the past years, attended by tens of people only, this time he was pleased to see the top political brass of the country. “SNP were our days of glory. We have to honor and respect that. I am convinced that SNP should always be celebrated as a national holiday,” he added. Glváč believes that schools should pay more attention to SNP so that the young generation understands it in the broad context to get the essence of what it meant for our nation.
held the UNFICYP Force Commanders‘ Gen. Maj. Chao Liu Commendation ceremony on the occasion of a mission rotation. The following members of the Slovak contingent were awarded medals: First Lt. Stanislav SÍKEL; Lt. Peter HUDEC; Staff Sg. Michal HANES; Staff Sg. Dušan KNAŠINSKÝ; Staff Sg. Juraj JAŠKO; Sg. Henrich DODEK and Corp. Marcel RICHNAVSKÝ. The Commander of the Multinational Contingent and of Sector 4, Lt. Col. Jozef Paňko congratulated the decorated soldiers and thanked them for excellent work done; highlighting the his delight and a feeling of pride especially in the light of the fact that the commendations were strictly limited in number.
MoD on Air and Online Just a reminder that MoD is back on air in September, and not only on radio airwaves - Slovak Television will start broadcasting the regular military show anew. Following the summer pause PROFESSIONAL is now back - its first edition will recall the summer events pertaining to the MoD and will contain an interview with the Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek. Plus, the new issue of the OBRANA monthly containing - among other things - an interview with Defense Minister M. Glváč on the issue of military pensions is now available on the Internet. The link is www.mosr.sk/obrana/ , the same as for all of this year´s editions of OBRANA and of our eBULLETIN.
The next day Defense Minister Glváč attended the celebrations of the 68th anniversary of SNP in Banská Bystrica in the company of the Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek. Approximately 2.500 people gathered at the SNP Memorial there. The official part of the program commenced at 11 AM by the act of laying wreaths in the Memorial Hall. The subsequent rally culminated in a ceremonial decoration of war veterans. The program included the presentation of Armed Forces and the Clubs of Military History.
Cannot Allow Concurrence Of Pension Contributions and Taxes (August 28) The Interior Ministry has made public the draft of the Act, which amends conditions for providing social security to soldiers and policemen. The draft contains certain regulations affecting the pensions of soldiers, policemen and firefighters – changes effective January 2013 ought to reduce the amounts the government has to subsidy the special accounts such pensions are paid out of. Starting next year the length of the service necessary to make the person eligible for a military pension should gradually increase to 25 years. To motivate policemen and sol-
diers to stay in service as long as possible, the formula of calculating the pension ought to change as well: the more they stay in service, the higher the pension. Individuals who became eligible to military pensions after June 30, 2002 should also pay a 10% special levy (until they reach the retirement age), and the contributions deducted from the wages of active soldiers and policemen should increase from 5% to 7%; while contributions paid by their employees should increase from 17% to 20%. The draft is currently in the interdepartmental consultations process.
eBULLETIN MoD SR
Simultaneously, the Finance Ministry has submitted a draft of the Act amending the Income Tax, which contains a provision on taxing military pensions by 19 %. Defense Minister Martin Glváč has repeatedly stated that the MoD´s priority is to stabilize the special account the military pensions are paid out of. “We don't believe it fair to levy the pensioners with the special contribution to the special account and tax their pensions at the same time, therefore the Defense Ministry leadership will do its best to prevent such concurrence,” said Glváč.
August 27 - September 2, 2012