Defence Minister J. Naď: “To me, it is essential that the public know the real state of Defence”

The Comprehensive Defence Review (CDR) of the Slovak Republic has, for the first time, been declassified and made available to the public since 2012, when the document was marked as Restricted. Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď has submitted the 2019 CDR to the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Security for consideration. The aim of declassifying the CDR is to keep the public updated on important issues, needs and problems in securing the defence of the State.

Commenting on the 2019 CDR, Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď said: “Every year I want to submit the Comprehensive Defence Review of the Slovak Republic in this way – publicly, without reshaping or obscuring it. To me, it is essential that the public know the real readiness of equipment and troops, the current manning levels in contrast to those on the tables of organisation and equipment, and, sadly, the alarming average number of flying hours by MiG-29 operational pilots.”

Thanks to the unclassified mode, the document is available to the public who can familiarise themselves with the current state of State defence and its shortages. Over the period under review, the document covers, among others, violations of legal regulations and internal guidelines in the field of material management and defence estate management; the operation and fighting ability of armaments and equipment; the preparations for performance of tasks during an emergency event, in a time of exceptional circumstances, the state of emergency, before and in a state of war; the implementation of public procurement; and the security of munition depots.

According to the released document, it was reported in 2019 that military infrastructure was obsolete and several facilities were in a poor state of repair, including warehouses with sensitive material. A systematic scheme for training SVK citizens for State defence was missing, including its conceptual elaboration and active and systematic explanations of issues related to State defence, e.g. the significance of NATO and EU membership. In this context, the Minister emphasised the importance of open communications on State defence. “Only if my colleagues, MPs, members of the Cabinet, subject matter specialists and the lay public realise the real state of Defence will I be able to help the Ministry of Defence.”

The 2019 Comprehensive Defence Review (CDR)