What do you currently see as our biggest threat? Undoubtedly, the biggest threat in today´s world is radicalism and unpredictable instability. We are talking about a phenomenon of a so-called Islamic State, the crisis in Ukraine, a changing attitude of Russia, a crisis of natural sources, and escalating problems of refugees and migration waves. All of this is occurring not only in the palpable context, but in the virtual space too. It may seem we are safely located in the heart of Europe, but that is just a misleading notion which may swiftly change if we don´t actively participate in the solution of these problems, and we don´t try to prevent them as much as possible. What features of the Czech Army are at the highest level? Our people – our soldiers who are very experienced and flexible. They prove their qualities every day while fulfilling demanding tasks, not only in operations abroad but at home, within the Czech Republic. Traditionally, we are known for
our skills in the defense against weapons of mass destruction, passive systems, and military medical services. Where, on the other hand, are we falling behind “the world”? It would be naïve to think that we may be equal in all areas to such armies as the US Forces, for example. Here, we are limited, and logically always will be, by the sources available. However, I don´t see this as a problem because of our alliance in NATO. The issue we have to resolve is the already mentioned modernization and optimization of personnel; this means obtaining the corresponding financing, so that we do not become a free-loader of the Alliance. Simply said, in the past few years we have fallen behind in investments to our defense. Another longtime problem is the acquisition process, where the Ministry of Defense was not able to fulfill for example the basic needs of the soldiers. I am speaking about the very basic areas of military gear and personal equipment. For this we must find a solution, so that our soldiers may
appropriately fulfill their tasks during training as well as operations. How many countries are Czech soldiers currently present in? I suppose you mean the deployment of our soldiers in foreign operations and observation missions within the alliance effort of NATO, EU operations, and UN missions. Currently, we have soldiers in Afghanistan, Mali, the Sinai Peninsula, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Congo, and Central African Republic. To make the list complete, I must also add the EU-NAVFOR operation on the Somali coast, where our soldiers work at the headquarters in Great Britain. Of course, our soldiers may also be found at the headquarters and other organizations of NATO. What do you think about the transit of allied forces through the Czech Republic in March? The transit of an American convoy, returning from alliance training in the Baltic and Poland, has raised an unusual wave of interest among the Czech public. The problem is the perception between “we and allies”. And we have been a NATO member for more than 15 years. Therefore, I am personally very happy that after the initial negative campaign, most of the public clearly and absolutely comprehensibly expressed their attitude and support to our commitment. A much discussed topic is the issue of drafting. Recently, the government accepted an amendment of “military law”. What is it about? Do you think it is a good way to increase the number of troops? By suspending the draft during peace time following the professionalization of the Czech Army in 2005, we saw the number of registered obligatory reserves decrease, not to mention the number of trained reserves. So, if we don´t renew the military draft we will gradually see a loss in the number of qualified men and women, especially those willing to participate actively in the armed defense of the country. Regarding the current security situation in the world, this would definitely not be a good step forward. At the same time, drafts will enable us to offer the public voluntary military training, to address the young generation and introduce them to the armed forces, and show them why defense is important to the whole country. The government also discussed the decision for soldiers to be called on more flexibly for natural disaster relief. Why are they not “flexible” now? The draft of the law No. 219 on military forces, which was discussed by the government, speaks rather about internal provisions, which in response to organization changes within the Czech Army will help us to become more flexible in deploying the forces and equipment from different units. The soldiers are and always will be ready to help, nothing is changing here. However, it is necessary to realize that the issue of natural disasters primarily falls under the Integrated Rescue System and the army within is supporting units, i.e. Fire Department, Czech Police, and Emergency Medical Services. The Fire Department has undergone a substantial increase of its abilities since the catastrophic floods
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