Servicemen come back from RSM in Afghanistan, MOD secures the return of a SVK civilian national to Slovakia

In the evening hours of Tuesday 14 April 2020, a SVK Government Air Service plane touched down at Sliač Air Base with 29 servicemen onboard, returning from Resolute Support Mission (RSM) in Afghanistan. On the same flight, the MOD also took action to secure the repatriation of a SVK civilian national.

Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď said: "We have withdrawn 29 SVK soldiers from Afghanistan, because their presence was non-essential for the provision of operational tasks. We made this decision following a request from the RSM Commander to minimise the staff levels. This move had to do with the anti-COVID-19 measures in place." He continued: "I am very pleased that, as well as securing the safe return of our soldiers, despite a complicated process we managed to help a Slovak lady who found herself stranded in a difficult situation, because there was no way for her to return home." He added that the repatriated SVK national worked in Afghanistan and was subjected to testing for COVID-19 before the fight. The results came back negative and and she was allowed to fly home with the servicemen.

On their return to Slovakia, the contingent members and the civilian were taken to the quarantine centre at the M. R. Štefánik Armed Forces Academy in Liptovský Mikuláš to undertake mandatory self-isolation. The Armed Forces are here for the security of Slovakia and its citizens on a 24/7/365 basis and are ready to help in any crisis situation, the head of the MOD emphasised.

20 SVK Armed Forces members remain deployed with RSM in Afghanistan, engaging in the training of Afghan security forces. A total of 464 SVK service personnel are currently deployed on international crisis management missions and operations abroad.