SNP marks its 73rd anniversary

Minister of Defence Peter Gajdoš took part in Slovakia-wide 73rd anniversary commemorations of the Slovak National Uprising (SNP) in Banská Bystrica. The official programme saw the participation of the three highest state representatives alongside direct participants of the anti-Nazi resistance movement.

A delegation of the Romanian Government, led by Vice Prime Minister Ion Marcel Ciolacu and MOD State Secretary for Defence Policy and Planning Mircea Dușa, with whom Minister of Defence Peter Gajdoš had visited the Romanian Army Cemetery in Zvolen before the start of the official commemorations, participated in the event this year too. Together they paid their respects to the memory of more than 10,000 Romanian soldiers who had made a considerable contribution to liberating the territory of today's Slovak Republic. “I have immense respect for all those who fought for our better future. It is an honour for me to salute their sacrifices,” underscored Head of the MOD.

The official programme of the SNP commemorations was launched with a flypast of SVK Air Force aircraft. To mark one of the most significant events in our history, soldiers had prepared a rich programme of side events, including a paratroopers' air drop and static displays of vehicles and weaponry. A Memorial Bench, conceived as a symbol of a resting place in recognition of veterans' engagements and achievements on military operations and missions abroad, was unveiled in tribute to veterans during an unveiling ceremony. The Memorial Bench is a Thank You for their service to their homeland, for defending peace and democracy, and for their role in the fight against international terrorism. It comes to represent a symbolic link between the Second World War and contemporary military history.