First Hungarian woman to lead a military peacekeeping mission

Katalin Langenbrick has been appointed as the commander of the Hungarian Peacekeeping Mission in Afghanistan. Katalin, the Chief Officer of the Department of Military, Preparatory and Training Logistics, is the first Hungarian woman to hold such a rank.

As honvedelem.hu reported, the appointment was made on the 18th of November, 2018. The new commander-in-chief herself stated that she

“did not find it a big deal” for her to achieve what she did, saying that she did not feel her gender to be an obstacle in any way.

She also added that in an international environment like the military mission in Afghanistan, female officers are not out of the ordinary.

When applying for the post, she found herself motivated most by all 20 years of experience she had had in the field of logistics. Of course, her ambition to cut her teeth in leading others also helped, not to mention her desire to be the one “who helped, supplied and provided aid to those who are out in the field.” 

Katalin thinks that a leader has to listen to their subordinates’ opinion, but the responsibility is hers and hers alone. She presumes she will have to be swift and decisive, acknowledging that not everyone will agree with her decisions, but she finds positivity and constructiveness absolutely vital in logistics. As per her words, 

the sentence “what do you even need that for?” can be heard one too many times in military logistics, and she intends to change that mindset.

Katalin mentioned that the lack of family and family love was what she found the most difficult thing to endure. This sentiment, similarly to most other soldiers, is genuinely hard to cope with, but Katalin reminded us that those who “stayed home” (the family of those in the military) are forced to deal with the absence of their loved ones as well.

What she finds very important is the feeling of equality: “when it comes to other nations, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a man or a woman; if you have the right skills and the ability to do a certain job, you’ll get it.”

The Hungarian Army has recently seen various attempts to catch up to other nations, including infrastructural and military investments.