At TC Lešť, Minister Naď thanks his Slovenian counterpart Marjan Šarec for Slovenia's contribution to NATO's battlegroup in Slovakia

Minister of Defence Jaroslav Naď hosted an honour cordon ceremony, welcoming his Slovenian counterpart, Marjan Šarec, Minister of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia, to the Training Centre (TC) Lešť. They both used the occasion to speak with and give their personal thanks to service personnel on deployment with NATO's enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) in Slovakia. This marked Mr Šarec's first official visit to Slovakia since taking up his new role at the beginning of June.

While at Lešť, the Slovak and Slovenian MOD leaders had a bilateral meeting to discuss the security situation in Europe against the backdrop of the Ukraine war, the ongoing processes in the trans-Atlantic partnership, and SVK-SVN bilateral defence cooperation and opportunities to further advance that cooperation.

Speaking at the meeting, Jaroslav Naď said: “Sloveniaʼs contribution to the Allied forces in Slovakia is an exceptional expression of unity and solidarity – and this is something we appreciate very much. The presence of Allied forces in our country makes us more resilient against security threats thanks to them stepping in to backfill gaps in our defensive capabilities, on which we would otherwise be spending considerable funding. Thatʼs what friendship is about, thatʼs what alliance is about – we protect together our territory, homes and citizens, while building public trust in the European pillar of trans-Atlantic security and defence.”

Marjan Šarec thanked the Slovak side for providing suitable conditions and infrastructure for SVN troops to serve in Slovakia. He emphasised that SVN service personnel are here in Slovakia to undertake tasks in the interests of preserving peace, stability and prosperity.

During the talks, the ministers took stock of SVK-SVN defence cooperation so far. Two successful examples are joint education & training activities and operational deployments of both armed forces to international crisis management efforts. Both sides can see there is still space for stepping up their joint engagements, especially in the sphere of Defence industry. If so, this would give both countries the benefits of boosting their defence capabilities.

As part of the official programme, Mr Naď and Mr Šarec saw live action demonstrations and received a tour of capabilities on static display on the firing range.

About 100 SVNCON personnel are currently stationed at the TC Lešť. A Mechanised Company from the Slovenian Armed Forces forms part of the NATO Multinational Battlegroup Slovakia (NATO MN BG SVK).