Minister Sklenár in Brussels: "Slovakia is a responsible and stable element of NATO's modernised collective defence system"
Ministry of Defence of The Slovak Republic
12.10.2023
On Day 2 of his working trip to Brussels, Defence Minister Martin Sklenár continued with the meetings on the programme of the NATO Defence Ministerial. At the beginning of the first meeting, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant briefed his NATO counterparts by videoconference on the current situation following the unprecedented terrorist attacks by Hamas on the State of Israel.
Given that the Slovak Embassy in Tel Aviv serves as the NATO Contact Embassy in Israel, Defence Minister Martin Sklenár made a statement on behalf of Bulgaria, Czechia, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and Romania, saying that NATO condemns the terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel and stands with Israel.
The central theme of the second part of today's discussions was the Alliance's deterrence and defence, with the emphasis on NATO's eastern flank. During the final meeting, Ministers addressed NATO missions and operations. Along with EU representatives, they discussed current security challenges in the Western Balkans and in other strategically important regions.
On NATO's new defence plans, approved by NATO leaders at the Alliance's July summit in Vilnius, Minister Sklenár emphasised the need to assign and regularly exercise forces. "NATO membership gives Slovakia the best security and defence guarantees. All NATO member countries are ready to provide the necessary forces and assets, ensuring that the collective defence system functions fully, even in the changed security situation," Mr Sklenár said.
Alongside this, Allied Defence Ministers also tackled issues related to the security situation in the Middle East, Kosovo, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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