Treaty on Open Skies – a pillar of stability and security in Europe

Based on the OSCE-related Open Skies Consultative Commission (OSCC) Decision on the Distribution of Active Quotas for Observation Flights of 17 October 2018 in Vienna, the Slovak Republic and the Republic of Poland conducted a joint observation flight over Ukraine according to the Treaty on Open Skies (TOS). The activity, led by the Slovak Republic, was conducted on 3-7 June 2019, using a rented and certified UKR Air Force An-30B observation aircraft.

As part of the observation flight, images of the country are captured by specialist types of sensors. Under the approval procedure, the flight plan and the points of observation were agreed with  Ukraine beforehand on 4 June 2019. The observation flight, which consisted of two segments (Borispol – Ivano-Frankovsk, Ivano-Frankovsk – Borispol), was conducted on 5 June 2019. The flight route, focusing on North and West Ukraine, measured 2099km out of the maximum flight distance of 2,100km.

The gathered imagery is available to all States Parties to the Open Skies Treaty and can be used by a wide expert community.

Through the Slovak Verification Centre, the Ministry of Defence acts as a guarantor of the commitments arising out of the Open Skies Treaty. The Slovak Verification Centre conducts not only active flights over other States Parties, but also accepts observation flights over Slovakia. In 2019, two observation flights, one by the Russian Federation and one by Ukraine, are expected to take place over Slovakia.

 
The International Relations Department (SVK MOD), under which remit the Slovak Verification Centre falls, highly appreciates this form of cooperation with the Republic of Poland. The main benefits entail developing bilateral relations in the politico-military dimension and building an expert base by exchanging experience and views on the implementation and development trends of the Treaty.