1st Mechanized Celebrated (October 2) Jaselské garrison in Topoľčany hosted the celebra ons of the 10th anniversary of the 1st Mechanized Brigade. The Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek and the Commander of Land Forces Brig. Gen. Ondřej Novosad awarded the best soldiers medals and military badges. The celebra ons, which were open to public, included a helicopter drop performed by the members of the 5th Special Forces Ba alion from Žilina, displays of mechanized platoon combat tac cs, weapon handling and crowd control, as well as sta c displays of military equipment, arms and accouterment, historical uniforms and weapons supplied by the Military History Ins tute in Piešťany and the Bukovina Military History Club from Mar n. The celebra ons included an act of laying wreaths at the memorial of soldiers who died in WWII, and a soccer tournament.
Will Slovakia Stay in KAF? (October 4) Slovakia stands ready to adapt to the current requirements of the ISAF opera on in Afghanistan, said Defense Minister Mar n Glváč at a mee ng with the Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (D -SACEUR) Gen. Richard Shirreff. Glváč also confirmed that the Slovak Republic is prepared to retain the guard unit in Kandahar for as long as necessary. “Of course, such a decision must be approved at the poli cal level,” said Glváč. Afghanistan will also be high on the agenda of the upcoming NATO defense ministers´ summit in Brussels. “We will discuss the future of Afghanistan a er 2014,” said D-SACEUR Schirreff. Glváč confirmed that he will personally travel to Brussels to take part in the discussions on Afghanistan a er 2014. “Following the summit we stand ready to respond to the requirements of the Allied Command Europe in terms of the defense planning process,” he said.
● The MoD succeeded in finding a strategic partner for the Military Repair Works (VOP) Nováky. The winner of the tender MSM Martin, Ltd. submitted the best proposal: an annual lease of 240.000 euros; 10.000 euros for the inventory and a pledge to maintain 140 jobs. The company currently employs 133 individuals. The MoD will not sell the VOP Nováky; the strategic partner will only lease the material part of tangible and intangible assets for 20 years to come. MSM will take over the company's management following the execution of the contract; most probably in January 2013. ● On October 1, 2012 a child's dream came true on the Sliač air base. Members of the Sliač Mixed (Fixed and Rotary) Wing and the Prešov Helicopter Wing in cooperation with the NGO “Wish” fulfilled the dream of a 17-year old handicapped boy Tomáš Danko. First they took him for a flight aboard a Mi-17 helicopter, and then the Commander of the Mixed Wing Lt. Col. Martin Hronec awarded Tomáš a Commemorative Letter to remind him of the day his dream came true. ● Members of the multifunctional engineering company of the Slovak ISAF contingent finished their work on the Entry Control Point 5 (ECP-5) to the Kandahar Airfield (KAF) military base. Their job was to fortify the control point for soldiers checking the trucks on entry onto the base. The intensity of rocket attacks and especially the proximity of the points of impact to the checkpoint require constant reconstruction and fortification of premises occupied by the Slovak soldiers. ● On October 3, 2012 the Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Peter Vojtek met the new Military Attaché of the Kingdom of Norway to the Slovak Republic Col. Øivind Oland Christensen, who replaced Lt. Col. Thomas Larsen Bergheim. Lt. Gen. Vojtek confirmed that the Slovak Armed Forces remain interested in the development of bilateral cooperation with Norway, especially in the area of military education and training.
Afghanistan also dominated the mee ng of the MoD State Secretary Miloš Koterec with the U.S. Ambassador to Slovakia H.E. Theodore Sedgwick on Wednesday. As per the Ambassador's words, the United States are interested in a long-term coopera on with the Slovak Republic within the frame of the amended Slovak military contribu on to the ISAF opera on, approved by the Slovak Parliament this July. Sedgwick praised the professionalism and commitment of Slovak soldiers in Afghanistan: “Members of your guard units and special forces deployed in the ISAF opera on do an excellent job in building a reputa on for Slovakia,“ said H.E. Sedgwick and confirmed that the United States are prepared to further develop the military coopera on with the Slovak Republic in the future.
● On October 3 and October 4, 2012 the Sereď engineering battalion organized a seminar for Engineering and Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) experts. The goal of the seminar was to inform the engineering and EOD experts on the concept of EOD, C-IED (Counter Improvised Explosive Devices) and engineering support, on the current status of standardization and implementation of NATO documents, on amendments to the International Crisis Management operations. Slovak engineering capabilities were also demonstrated.
The Dukla Parallels
(October 6) Dukla has a special place among all WWII memorials. In September and October of 1944 the Dukla Pass was the place where the first Czechoslovak and Soviet troops crossed over onto our territory; and it was the Carpathian-Dukla Operation which wrote the first chapter in the history of Czechoslovakia's liberation. From September 8 to October 27, 1944 more than 85.000 Soviet and 6.500 Czechoslovak soldiers either died or suffered injuries there. “The Dukla Memorial remains a symbol of bravery and of victory over fascism. It stands here to remind us that fighting for a better future and for living our lives in peace had and still has its meaning. Let those values, that many soldiers died here defending, become an indelible part of our present actions,” said Defense Minister Martin Glváč in his speech before the Memorial of Czechoslovak soldiers at Dukla. In his words the parallels between the Carpathian-Dukla Operation and the present day are to be found in the activities of the Slovak Armed Forces – similar to the soldiers at Dukla, who had not waited idly for the help of the superpowers; our troops today actively participate in solving both military and non-military threats to the world stability and peace. Both at home and in the international missions they support, maintain and help create a better world for everyone. Along with the President of the Slovak Republic Ivan Gašparo-vič Defense Minister Glváč placed wreaths at the Soviet Army Memorial and at the sculpture of the General of the Army Ludvík Svoboda in Svidník.
● On Monday, October 8, 2012 after 2 p.m. Radio Regina Košice Military Feature will take a look on the celebrations of the 68th anniversary of the Dukla operation. On Wednesday, October 10, 2012 after 4 p.m. Radio Slovakia Military Feature will attend the FORT PRIBINA exercise on Lešť, where the 12. Mechanized Battalion Group belonging to NRF 13 is expected to be COMBAT READY certified. In the army TV magazine PROFESSIONÁL broadcasted initially on October 10, 2012 on STV 2 at 11:25 p.m. and then in two reruns on October 11, 2012 at 2:40 p.m. and on October 16, 2012 at 6:50 a.m., will show you how to assemble the Universal Loading Ramp (UNOR) - an almost 3.500 kilogram steel lego. Viewers will also be introduced to Lieutenant Miroslav Gotthardt from the Košice Military Transport Center.
NATO 2020 and the Armed Forces: Way Ahead
www.mosr.sk/ebulletin/
(October 2) The MoD State Secretary Miloš Koterec opened the international conference NATO 2020 and the Armed Forces: Way Ahead in Bratislava. Among the honored guests were the Czech Deputy Defense Minister, the State Secretary from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the NATO Assistant Secretary General for Defense Policy and Planning. The two-day conference organized by the Center for European and North Atlantic Affairs (CENAA) under the auspices of the MoD and the NATO Public Diplomacy Division presented an ideal opportunity to broadly discuss the future of the Alliance by the year 2020 in the context of the upcoming summit of NATO Defense Ministers in Brussels.
eBULLETIN MoD SR
The conference also presented an opportunity for the MoD State Secretary to meet Ambassador Hüseyin Diriöz, NATO Assistant Secretary General for Defense Policy and Planning to discuss international cooperation in defense capabilities projects as a response to current rather complicated situation in defense budgets, and a way to deepen mutual relations among allies. “We are looking into an interesting form of regional cooperation with the Czech Republic, which could become an example of smart approach to capability development for various other countries,” said Koterec at the meeting assuring Diriöz that Slovakia remains interested in searching for creative solutions to the regional defense cooperation.
October 1 - 7, 2012