PHOTOS: Spectacular military exercise began in Hungary, minister says aim is to strengthen EU defence capabilities – UPDATED

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, wrote that Hungary was creating a 21st-century army.

Brave Warrior military exercise near Kőröshegy. Photo: FB/Hungarian defence minister

Development of joint defence capabilities

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.

“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 EUFOR Althea 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.

Read also:

• Hungary sticking to decision against sending weapons to Ukraine, says chief of staff – read more HERE
• PHOTOS: First Hungarian KC-390 cargo plane arrives from Brazil