PHOTOS: Spectacular military exercise began in Hungary, minister says aim is to strengthen EU defence capabilities – UPDATED
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Spectacular military exercise, “Brave Warrior 24” has started near Kőröshegy, a small Hungarian village south from Lake Balaton. The Hungarian defence minister said the military drill’s aim was to strengthen EU defence capabilities. It is also an opportunity for the Hungarian soldiers to show their skills and knowledge for their allies.
The Hungarian presidency of the European Council sees the development of defence capabilities as a priority, the chief of the Hungarian Armed Forces said in Kőröshegy, near Lake Balaton, at the Central Training Base of the Hungarian Armed Forces, after a military show in the framework of a meeting of the EU Military Committee (EUMC). In a Facebook post, Hungary’s defence minister, Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky, wrotethat Hungary was creating a 21st-century army.
Brave Warrior military exercise near Kőröshegy. Photo: FB/Hungarian defence minister
Gábor Böröndi told a press conference after the show that Hungary was a staunch supporter of strengthening Europe’s defence industry and crisis management capacity, so that the bloc can live up to the challenges of a changing security environment. The “dynamic presentation” concluding the Brave Warrior 2024 military exercise was attended by the chiefs of staff of the EU member states, as well as those of Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania, and the military representative of North Macedonia. Besides Hungarian troops, Croatian, Romanian, Slovak and Slovenian units also participated in the exercise, Böröndi said.
Development of joint defence capabilities
It was a critically important step in the development of joint defence capabilities and future crisis management operations,” he said. The aim was to advance peace and stability, he said. Summarising the exercise, General Röbert Brieger, chairman of the EUMC, said the script was simulating the evacuation of EU citizens from a politically unstable third country. Besides the participating infantry and reconnaissance units of Hungary, Romania and Slovakia, experts from Italy, Slovenia, Croatia and Greece contributed to organising and leading the exercise, the general said. The joint commitment showed the possibilities in the EU’s armed forces, he added.
Photo: FB/Hungarian defence minister
Photo: FB/Hungarian defence minister
A common aim is to strengthen the European Union’s defence and crisis management capability which is particularly important because of the migration situation, the chief of the Hungarian armed forces said after a meeting of the European Union Military Committee’s (EUMC) chiefs of defence in Budapest on Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters, Gábor Böröndi noted that the current three-day EUMC meeting organised as part of the Hungarian EU presidency’s programme was the second one held outside Brussels.
Photo: FB/Hungarian defence minister
Photo: FB/Hungarian defence minister
Photo: FB/Hungarian defence minister
“Hungary is committed towards the European Union’s military operations and strives to further strengthen the EU’s military role, with a special focus on building up a common military force to tackle external threats,” he said. “Our common goal is to achieve that the EU should play a leading role in providing for its own security.”
He said that with their contributions the Western Balkan countries further strengthened Europe’s defence and peace.
Development of EU defence capabilities a priority
The EU’s EUFORAlthea peace-keeping mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the bloc’s largest land mission operating under Hungarian command, “illustrates well the military role Hungary has in the European Union,” Böröndi said. He also noted Hungary’s participation in the EU’s military mission in the North-West Indian Ocean (CMP NWIO).
General Robert Brieger, chairman of the EUMC, said that the strategic issues raised at Tuesday’s meeting included operations by the EU’s naval forces in the North-West Indian Ocean as well as the EU’s common rapid response units, support to Ukraine and the Western Balkan countries’ participation in the common defence and security policy.
He said the EU was “only one step away” from achieving full operational capability which will then allow the bloc to respond fast to various crisis situations.
The meeting’s participants discussed ways for the EU to help the training of the Ukrainian armed forces with the aim to strengthen its defence capabilities.
“Since the outbreak of the war, the EU has been providing enormous help to Ukraine in the form of financial support, training and supplying military equipment. We will continue this support in the framework of the new mission supporting Ukraine, because the stability of the region is crucial from the point of view of the continent’s peace besides Ukraine also in the Western Balkans.”
Answering a question, Böröndi said Hungary neither supported nor opposed the EU’s training mission in Ukraine, but added that Hungarian troops would not participate in it.
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I have never seen the name “Russia” spoken in any public statement by anyone in Hungary’s defence department. In this statement you hear about defence capabilities for “migrants”. Is that what the military exercises and Gripen jets are for? What does Hungary’s military exist for and why does Hungary participate in NATO. What country has Europe been protecting itself from since NATO was created in 1949? NATO is not a “neutral” organization and Hungary cannot be a member of the club and outside it at the same time. It’s now time for the NATO membership to deal with Hungary because it has completely divorced itself from NATO’s primary mission which is to counter the threat of Russia and Hungary has become a Russian ally.
I have never seen the name “Russia” spoken in any public statement by anyone in Hungary’s defence department. In this statement you hear about defence capabilities for “migrants”. Is that what the military exercises and Gripen jets are for? What does Hungary’s military exist for and why does Hungary participate in NATO. What country has Europe been protecting itself from since NATO was created in 1949? NATO is not a “neutral” organization and Hungary cannot be a member of the club and outside it at the same time. It’s now time for the NATO membership to deal with Hungary because it has completely divorced itself from NATO’s primary mission which is to counter the threat of Russia and Hungary has become a Russian ally.