Austrian Chief of Defence Visits Hungary

The soldiers of the Austrian Armed Forces have been staying in Hungary since early November, and they joined the ongoing works on 14 November. The primary mission of the contingent is to set up border protection bases equipped with public utilities, and to construct fences around these bases.

During the discussions, the delegations made it clear that the handling of the migration situation presents serious challenges to both countries, which require all-of-government and pan-European action. The cooperation between the two nations – a tangible result of which is the deployment of the Austrian engineer contingent in Hungary – sets an example to whole Europe.

On the first day of the visit, the delegation travelled to Hódmezővásárhely and Kelebia. In the barracks of the HDF 5th Bocskai István Infantry Brigade, in the company of the Hungarian Chief of Defence, Gen. Othmar Commenda personally inspected the accommodation conditions of the Austrian soldiers serving along the southern border, and then, while in Kelebia, he also had a glimpse into the Hungarian–Austrian joint engineering work.

In answer to a question from the press, Gen. Othmar Commenda said that “There is a long tradition of military cooperation between Hungary and Austria. For us, it’s a pleasure to be here. For example, I and General Tibor Benkő are very good friends, and we’ve known each other for many years."

Speaking about his experiences gained during the visit, he added that “It will be hard for the Austrian soldiers to go back home because I think the accommodation and working conditions here are at least on the same level, or in a certain way much better."

On the second day of his visit, Gen. Othmar Commenda is to pay a courtesy call to Minister of Defence Dr. István Simicskó, and then the foreign delegation will be introduced to the activities and equipment of the HDF NCO Academy in Szentendre.

Photos by the author