Armed Forces mark their day
(22 September) A ceremony commemorating the events of 22 September 1848 and the Uprisings of 1848 and 1849, which have been intertwined with Slovakia´s entire contemporary history, was held on Monday in Bratislava. Armed Forces Day celebrations began with a remembrance assembly at the SVK MOD´s Appeasement Memorial. There, officials from the SVK Ministry of Defence, members of the SVK Armed Forces General Staff and Command gathered to pay tribute to the memory of fallen heroes. As part of the ceremony, the Order of the SVK President marking the occasion of SVK Armed Forces Day was read out in the presence of the former SVK Chiefs of the SVK Armed Forces General Staff, representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Slovakia, and other important VIP guests. Chief of the General Staff Lt Gen Milan Maxim asked for a tribute to be jointly paid to the 57 members of the SVK Armed Forces who had died while on duty. The official programme included an awards ceremony, where the SVK GS members received awards for their work. Minister of Defence Martin Glváč and Chief of the General Staff Lt Gen Milan Maxim awarded the Military Medals for Loyalty to the SVK Armed Forces and the Chief of the General Staff Badges. The series of commemorations culminated in a Bratislava-held ceremony highlighting the historical roots and the significance of military traditions as being the basis of today’s SVK Armed Forces.
● As part of Exercise Sharp Lynx 2014, military policemen and women from Poland, Croatia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia rivalled one another in a firing competition with the Glock 17 pistols. As the most skilled shooter at the Dobrotice firing range showed himself Capt Jaroslav Slančík, a Slovak military policeman and a member of the Vlkanová – Hronsek Training and Canine Centre. At this year’s Exercise Sharp Lynx he performed the role of Deputy Commander of the NATO Multinational Battalion.
Our ISAF ops draw to a close (23 September) With the lowering of the Slovak flag, which had been flu ering over the SVK camp at Kandahar Airfield for years, the Slovak units reached the end of their ISAF opera ons in Afghanistan on Monday 22 September 2014. “The 22nd rota on of SVK troops concluded their operaons in Afghanistan. All of our soldiers put in a tremendous amount of work and represented Slovakia to the highest standard, for which I would like to extend my thanks to them. Equally important, the memory of those who made the ul mate sacrifice while on duty in Afghanistan will always be cherished,” said SVK Minister of Defence Mar n Glváč. The Coali on partners who had taken part in our units' successful performance of tasks were presented with the Commemora ve Medals of the SVK Minister of Defence. “I am proud to say that the reliability of and the trust in our servicemen and women have become widely recognized by our Coali on partners,” reminded the SLOVCON Commander, Col. Zoltán Iboš. For their work, the Slovak service personnel were also thanked by Commander Regional Command-South, Maj Gen Michael Bills. As part of the ceremony, the SVK personnel received the NATO ISAF medals and were officially re-subordinated under the command of the SVK Armed Forces.
Concrete assistance for Ukraine
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(25 September) Ukrainian EOD personnel will receive a training package in Slovakia, which is being seen as another form of our concrete assistance being given to Ukraine. This was confirmed by SVK Minister of Defence Mar n Glváč a er speaking with Ukrainian Defence Minister Valery Geletey at a mee ng in Ukraine. According to Glváč, the Ministry of Defence con nues to be ready to respond to any relevant requirements on the side of Ukraine. The Ukrainian minister highly appreciated Slovakia’s hitherto assistance, whether that is the reverse flow of gas, humanitarian aid, or even medical care for the wounded in hospitals throughout Slovakia. Furthermore, he emphasized that the Slovak Republic is one of the few countries to have provided concrete assistance, which means a lot more to them than media disinforma on. During the mee ng, Minister Glváč informed his Ukrainian colleague of the SVK Na onal Council’s approval of the Associa on Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine on Tuesday 23 September. Minister Geletey then updated the head of the SVK MOD on the developments in Ukraine’s eastern border region and, in this respect, set out the future goals. Later, Mar n Glváč received a tour of the 21st Aviasvit Defence and Aircra Equipment Exhibion. At the end of his visit, he invited the Ukrainian minister to a end the 70th anniversary commemora ons of the Carpatho-Dukla opera on, due to take place on 6 October.
● On 17 – 20 September, in line with the Treaty on Open Skies (TOS), the Russian Federation carried out an observation flight with the Antonov An-30B over the territory of the Slovak Republic. It was the first time the TOS digital sensors were employed over the Slovak territory. The flight itself was performed on 18 September, measuring 1 085.5km. The Slovak Verification Centre also invited representatives from Poland and the Czech Republic, aiming to develop an expert base for this OSCE-specific field and to further the development of military-political relations.
Congrats to our sportsmen
(22 September) SVK Minister of Defence Martin Glváč congratulated the sportsmen from the Military Sports Centre Dukla Banská Bystrica (MSC DBB) on winning the medals at the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championship, taking place in the American town of Deep Creek. The new world champions in men’s C1 became Michal Martikán and Alexander Slafkovský from the MSC DBB, and Matej Beňuš from the SVK Interior Ministry’s State Sports Representation Centre. The silver medal in men’s C2 went to the teams composed of Ján Bátik and Tomáš Kučera, brothers Peter and Pavol Hochschorner, and cousins Ladislav and Peter Škantár. The bronze medal in women’s K1 was gained by the team of Elena Kaliská, Jana Dukátová and Kristína Nevařilová. An excellent 4th place in men’s K1 was taken by the MSC DBB competitors – Martin Halčin and Ján Šajbidor, and Matúš Hujsa from the SVK Ministry of Interior’s State Sports Representation Centre.
● A ceremonial gathering of the Land Forces personnel and members of the Anti-Nazi Fighters Union on the occasion of SVK Armed Forces Day took place at the SVK Land Forces HQ in Trenčín on 22 September. Brig Ondřej Novosad, Land Forces Commander, awarded selected Land Forces personnel the SVK Chief of the General Staff Military Medals and Badges. By laying wreaths at the commemorative plaques at the SVK Land Forces HQ, Brig Novosad paid his tribute to those who sacrificed their lives for freedom and democracy. ● A Tank Squadron from the Trebišov-based 21st Combined Mechanized Battalion, logistically supported by the battalion’s Combat Support Company, underwent an intensive field training exercise, taking place at the Kamenica nad Cirochou Military Training Area on 16 – 26 September. Its aim was to practise firing the weapons installed on the T-72M1 tank’s turret, personal weapons both in the day-time and night-time environments, and throwing the RG-F1 hand grenades. Tank commanders improved their command skills, giving orders to execute firing tasks and coordinating the action of their tank crews in identifying and destroying targets. ● Four military policemen, deployed to the ISAF operation at Kandahar Airfield (KAF), officially concluded their operational tasks on 20 September 2014. On this occasion, Col Fletcher V. Washington, KAF Garrison Commander, awarded them the Army Achievement Medals for successful and exemplary performance of tasks during their service with the International Military Police (IMP) at KAF. In the end, a Slovak IMP KAF representative, acting on behalf of the Military Police Director, awarded the 23rd US Army Military Police Company the Military Police Commemorative Plaque as a thank-you for their co-operation and assistance when performing joint tasks as part of the IMP KAF.
Homecoming ceremony
(25 September) After their arrival from the UNFICYP peace-keeping mission, SVK Armed Forces servicemen and women were welcomed at a homecoming ceremony on the parade grounds of the Nitra-based Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade. The ceremony was attended by Marios Kountourides, Ambassador of the Republic of Cyprus, Lt Gen Milan Maxim, Chief of the SVK General Staff, Brig Miroslav Korba, SVK Air Force Commander, Lt Gen Zoltan Orosz, Deputy Chief of the Hungarian Defence Staff, and other guests. During the ceremony, Slovak and Hungarian troops were awarded the Medals for Service in Peace Observation Missions. Six soldiers were presented with the War Veteran Badges.
Sharp Lynx in its final stage
(28 September) Putting the NATO Multinational Military Police Battalion (MNMPBAT) through their paces, Exercise Sharp Lynx 2014 culminated at the Březina Military Training Area. The exercising military policemen, deployed from Poland, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and the U.S.A., carried out missions typically conducted during real deployments. The Polish MNMPBAT commander, Lt Col Mateusz Dadal, his Slovak Second-in-Command, Capt Jaroslav Slančík, and Chief of Staff, Maj Marián Turanský, formed a well-coordinated team that met the requirements of the training package. According to the senior training supervisor, Col Pavel Fejfar, GS, the training exercise served as an excellent preparation. After its thorough assessment and review at the December 2014 conference in Krakow, all the battalion’s further steps will be directed
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towards its main goal: the unit’s certification during Exercise Compact Eagle 15, which is scheduled to take place in November 2015 in the Republic of Poland.
September 22 - 28, 2014