Minister Naď: “Strong partnership and common Euro-Atlantic values form the pillars of the successful politico-military cooperation between Slovakia and Germany”

Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď met Minister of Defence of the Federal Republic of Germany Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer at MOD Main Building during her first official visit to Slovakia today (17 July 2020). Both leaders addressed current issues of security and defence and devoted their time to identifying opportunities for a further strengthening of bilateral ties.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister Naď said: “12 years have passed since the last official visit of the German Defence Minister to Bratislava. I highly value that Madam Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer has come for a visit to Slovakia exactly today on her first anniversary in office. During the meeting, I clearly stated the Slovak Government′s positions on the defence and security of our country and opinions on the future of European and Euro-Atlantic defence policy.” He continued: “The Federal Republic of Germany is, undoubtedly, one of our most significant partners and allies in the international community – both politically and economically. This is demonstrated by our excellent Defence cooperation between our countries and evidenced by our common achievements,” said the Minister.

Minister Naď highlighted the role of the DEU Presidency of the Council of the European Union and expressed his support for its priorities and initiatives in the field of security and defence, among which are the Strategic Compass, Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) and deepening EU-NATO cooperation. “Strong partnership and common Euro-Atlantic values form the pillars of the successful politico-military cooperation between Slovakia and Germany are an important starting point for the decision-making processes at the multilateral level.”

Minister of Defence of the Federal Republic of Germany Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said: “My working trip to Bratislava is a trip to see our partners and friends to whom we are bound by our common positions and values. The bilateral engagement between Slovakia and Germany is at a very good level and has proved effective in the past. This, too, is one of the reasons why I have made the decision to keep the Office of German Defence Attaché to Slovakia open.” The Minister also underlined the role of the SVK Military Police Boarding Team aboard a German frigate on Op Sophia in the Mediterranean. According to her, the pandemic has also demonstrated the need for European countries to closely cooperate on bolstering resilience and responsiveness. On the existing military cooperation in this field, the head of the German MOD said: “Especially the military cooperation developed so far is proof that countries are capable of cooperating at a time of crisis.”

A key theme was the participation of SVK military personnel in missions and operations abroad. On the deployment of SVK Military Police personnel on Op Sophia, Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď said: “It was the most successful project of the SVK-DEU bilateral Defence cooperation.” For this reason, the Ministers focused on the continuity of this cooperation as part of Op Irini, starting in August.

Minister Naď commended the participation of German representatives in the NATO Force Integration Unit Slovakia (NFIU SVK) at Vajnory Barracks, Bratislava. Both leaders gave positive assessments of the ongoing comprehensive cooperation on training, exercises involving Army and Air Force units, and education with the active involvement of the Slovak Armed Forces Academy in Liptovský Mikuláš and the Bundeswehr Command and Staff College in Hamburg. Also discussed were the goals and visions of both MODs. In this context, Minister Naď presented the modernisation programmes of the Armed Forces and the revision of Slovakia′s strategic security and defence documents. Finally, he invited representatives of the Federal Ministry of Defence to the International Defence Exhibition Bratislava (IDEB) to be held on 28-30 October 2020.