Minister Naď meets Commander NATO JFC Brunssum Gen Vollmer for talks on current priorities and NATO cooperation

Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď met today with Commander Allied Joint Force Command (JFC) Brunssum Gen Jörg Vollmer at the Ministry of Defence for talks on security and defence issues of current relevance and NATO's multilateral cooperation. On this occasion, Minister Naď briefed Gen Vollmer on the basic pillars of Slovakia's Strategic Security and Defence Strategies and updated him on the SVK military's role in the fight against COVID-19.

Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď said: “When tackling current challenges faced by all Allied countries, whether it be the challenges in the sphere of security and defence, the fight against the coronavirus pandemic or the fight against disinformation and hybrid threats, we must act together. The new strategic documents – the SVK Security Strategy and the SVK Defence Strategy acknowledge the definition of Slovakia's position as a firm constituent of the Euro-Atlantic area, by which we send out a clear signal that joint solutions do matter to us.”

The head of the MOD provided an update to Gen Vollmer on the plans and progress being made in the field of Armed Forces modernisation and military infrastructure development, including on the planned G2G procurement of 3D radar systems in order to meet the operational demands of the SVK Air Force. The delivery of international commitments received due attention too, among others, the expenditure target of 2% of GDP on defence by 2024. “I wish to see this commitment being carried through continually,” said Minister Naď.

There was also room for discussing the deployments of the SVK Armed Forces on missions and operations abroad. To this end, Defence Minister Naď noted that this year Slovakia is planning to increase the number of military personnel posted to NATO's command structures.