Government Decision Is Published on Hungarian Military Role in Mali

Published in the latest issue of the Hungarian Journal, the government decision says that “in
order to fulfill Hungary’s commitments arising from its membership in the European Union,
as a national contribution to strengthening the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP)
of the European Union, based on a decision made by the Council of the European Union", the
government authorizes the participation of Hungarian troops in the European Union Training
Mission – Mali (EUTM Mali).

Based on the government’s decision, the Hungarian Defence Forces contribute up to 15 (up to
30 in rotation periods) service members to the mission. The decision rules that the Hungarian
participation is to last for the time period set by the operational mandate, but until May 18,
2014 at the latest. It also notes that this period does not include the length of time needed for
deploying to and withdrawing from the area of operations.

In support of the Hungarian military participation in the EUTM Mali mission, the government
of Hungary has made a decision on “reallocating earmarked sums from the reserve funds for
the emergency measures taken by the government". In accordance with this, the government
has ordered the one-off reallocation of around HUF 555 million. The Minister of National
Economy is responsible for this immediate reallocation. The governmental decision also
states that the Minister of Defence is responsible for the cost accounting which is due until
April 30, 2014.

Acting on a request from the President of Mali, on January 11 France launched a military
operation in the Western African country to halt the advance of Islamist militias in control
of the northern part of Mali. The objectives of the operation are to protect Mali’s statehood,
territorial integrity and sovereignty, and to prevent the country from becoming the center of
international terrorist groups in the region. The UN Security Council unanimously supported
the military action.

In early February, Minister of Defence Csaba Hende announced that Hungary would
contribute ten trainers – six snipers, three medical specialists and one liaison officer – to
the EUTM Mali mission. On Wednesday, March 6, after his Warsaw talks with the defence
ministers of the countries of the Visegrád (V4) and the Weimar cooperation, the Minister told
Hungarian News Agency MTI that the French Defence Minister gave a detailed account and
assessment of the ongoing operation in Mali, and thanked the troop contributing countries
of the mission, including Hungary. Minister Hende said that there still were some capability
niches in the French-led operation, but as soon as everything is in place, the Hungarian troops
would join the mission, probably in early April.

(Photo for illustration only!)