Remedial action on military infrastructure in poor state of repair is among SVK MOD's main priorities
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- Date: 19.06.2020
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Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď today visited the military units based in Michalovce and Trebišov. He was interested in the real status of their infrastructure which had, in the long term, been markedly neglected by former senior leaders of the Ministry of Defence. On his fact-finding trip, the Minister was joined by State Secretary of the SVK MOD Marian Majer, Deputy Chief of Defence Lt Gen Josef Pokorný, Milan Potocký MP and Rastislav Jílek MP.
Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď said: “No investments have been made in military infrastructure for years, the result of which is that buildings and facilities are in a poor state of repair. It is unthinkable that the infrastructure can be neglected any longer. Simply put, this is an important area to which we will pay close attention.“ He continued: “We want to take on every challenge and do the absolute maximum we can for SVK servicemen and women. Because it is important that the working environment where they spend most of their time should be kept at an adequate level and meet the safety regulations.”
On the occasion of his visit to Michalovce Garrison's White Mountain Training Ground, Minister Naď appreciated that soldiers have started repairing the neglected buildings and facilities on their own by carrying out minor repairs and maintenance. “If investments had been made as they should have been – continually and transparently, the situation would not be critical as it is today,” said Minister Naď. This is not fair especially to active duty soldiers who deserve the best Service conditions in executing their duties. He further underlined that the control tower on the driving range for combat vehicles, which has recently been greatly damaged in an earthquake, needs essential repair.
The head of the MOD expressed his conviction that it is important to enable service personnel to perform their duties, whether that's part of domestic or international crisis management, with the use of modern and reliable military equipment. “The Artillery Battalion will be reinforced by 25 ZUZANA 2 Self-propelled Gun Howitzers. I believe that the modern equipment will meet their expectations, because this is a cutting edge product of our domestic defence industry,“ said Minister Naď during his visit to the Self-propelled Artillery Battalion Michalovce.
As part of his away day, Minister Naď also visited the military facility at the Zemplínska šírava Reservoir which the former MOD leadership planned to redesign as a retirement home for SVK veterans. “It has turned out to be a political utopia because what they promised, not only to soldiers, has seen no follow-up action. No projects and no thought-out business plan were processed, nor was any funding set aside,” he said.
Today, Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď also visited military units subordinate to the SVK Army Headquarters, including the Self-propelled Artillery Battalion and 22nd Mechanised Battalion in Michalovce as well as 21st Mechanised Battalion, 23rd Motorised Battalion and Tank Battalion in Trebišov. On this occasion, he thanked service personnel for holding themselves to high standards of professionalism and was interested in how to improve their Service conditions and the infrastructure of their units. “All the three battalions are based in one barracks. There is a need to invest here and hence contribute to better performance of Service duties the sooner the better,” said Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď.
Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď said: “No investments have been made in military infrastructure for years, the result of which is that buildings and facilities are in a poor state of repair. It is unthinkable that the infrastructure can be neglected any longer. Simply put, this is an important area to which we will pay close attention.“ He continued: “We want to take on every challenge and do the absolute maximum we can for SVK servicemen and women. Because it is important that the working environment where they spend most of their time should be kept at an adequate level and meet the safety regulations.”
On the occasion of his visit to Michalovce Garrison's White Mountain Training Ground, Minister Naď appreciated that soldiers have started repairing the neglected buildings and facilities on their own by carrying out minor repairs and maintenance. “If investments had been made as they should have been – continually and transparently, the situation would not be critical as it is today,” said Minister Naď. This is not fair especially to active duty soldiers who deserve the best Service conditions in executing their duties. He further underlined that the control tower on the driving range for combat vehicles, which has recently been greatly damaged in an earthquake, needs essential repair.
The head of the MOD expressed his conviction that it is important to enable service personnel to perform their duties, whether that's part of domestic or international crisis management, with the use of modern and reliable military equipment. “The Artillery Battalion will be reinforced by 25 ZUZANA 2 Self-propelled Gun Howitzers. I believe that the modern equipment will meet their expectations, because this is a cutting edge product of our domestic defence industry,“ said Minister Naď during his visit to the Self-propelled Artillery Battalion Michalovce.
As part of his away day, Minister Naď also visited the military facility at the Zemplínska šírava Reservoir which the former MOD leadership planned to redesign as a retirement home for SVK veterans. “It has turned out to be a political utopia because what they promised, not only to soldiers, has seen no follow-up action. No projects and no thought-out business plan were processed, nor was any funding set aside,” he said.
Today, Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď also visited military units subordinate to the SVK Army Headquarters, including the Self-propelled Artillery Battalion and 22nd Mechanised Battalion in Michalovce as well as 21st Mechanised Battalion, 23rd Motorised Battalion and Tank Battalion in Trebišov. On this occasion, he thanked service personnel for holding themselves to high standards of professionalism and was interested in how to improve their Service conditions and the infrastructure of their units. “All the three battalions are based in one barracks. There is a need to invest here and hence contribute to better performance of Service duties the sooner the better,” said Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď.
