“We Are The NATO”

"In my lecture I will talk about the Hungarian reality of today," Dr. Ágnes Vadai emphasized, then she mentioned two important dates from the last decade: Hungary’s accession to the NATO and the European Union, which have brought big changes into the life of the Hungarian Defence Forces. "The Hungarian Defence Forces are based on voluntary service and our democratic principles. And the alliance network Hungary is a member of is also working. Naturally, the security challenges Hungary had faced 20 years ago have changed after September 11, 2001, that has brought new global dangers – the security challenge called international terrorism is what fundamentally determines the situation of the Hungarian Defence Forces." The state secretary informed the audience about the fundamental changes in the Hungarian Defence Forces and the Ministry of Defence, and also mentioned that we operate an integrated Ministry of Defence, which was an important step in the life of the Republic of Hungary.

Military reform

The state secretary stressed: the past ten years of the Hungarian Defence Forces and the ministry have been characterized by continuous military reform. As regards the development of the new structure she said that in the past years several background institutions have been established, furthermore the Joint Forces Command and the Development and Logistics Agency have also been set up. "At the end of December 2007, we closed a difficult ten-twenty years. The new structure has been operating since then. A good example of this is the PRT in Afghanistan, which used to be the top of operational activities not long ago, but for today new organizations such as the OMLT or the special operational team have been established," said the state secretary.

Ágnes Vadai also spoke about the changes in the personnel numbers of the Hungarian Defence Forces. In the period between 1999 and 2009, the staff numbers have decreased by some fifty per cent. The state secretary added: today there is no conscription, we have contracted troops instead. In connection with the voluntary reservist system she said that in order that it can strengthen, there should be financial motivation and the security of employees and employers has to be provided for. "Employers have to be made interested in letting their employees go. There is a need for financing and acts have to be modified." Ágnes Vadai pointed out that today the proportion of women in the defence forces is significantly higher then before. The state secretary also spoke about the appearance of Romas in the army, saying that they support their enlistment with many scholarships. "This is very important, for the defence forces are the reflection of society," she emphasized.

Allowances

As regards labour market issues Ágnes Vadai said the Hungarian Defence Forces have to be made attractive. "In the past years the defence forces have lost some of their competitiveness, but looking at the allowance schemes I can still say that they offer a more secure opportunity than many other areas. Although it is true that there are deficiencies. For example we have to increase the efficiency of recruitment. Just like we have to improve the retention capability as well," the state secretary added. She specifically mentioned allowances that are typical of the defence forces, such as housing subsidy, food, clothing, and social allowances, reimbursements, education subsidies, cafeteria – the last one is for civilian employees. "This year the amount the troops will get from the defence ministry as an extra benefit will be around 300,000 forints. I believe it is extremely important, just like the fact that at the end of their career, officers should be able to retire with dignity and their pension should be worthy of a soldier." As the students have learned from the state secretary, in the past ten years the budget of the Hungarian Defence Forces and the Ministry of Defence was 300-350 billion forints. "At the beginning of the year we never know what kind of security challenges the country will face, therefore the defence forces cannot have an activity that cannot be funded from budgetary resources." She also spoke about Hungary’s commitment in Afghanistan and troop increase in the Hungarian mission: like she said they can finance the troop surge in Afghanistan from budgetary reserves. The state secretary added: there has never been a conflict between the opposition and the government in the issues related to the missions. In her presentation Ágnes Vadai also spoke about the settlement of wages and ranks. In her opinion next year it will be essential to settle the ranks and wages, irrespective of who will be in government.

Developments

Ágnes Vadai also spoke about the development expenditure of the Hungarian Defence Forces. Like she said this year and next year, the Gripen procurements will constitute the most part of this amound. "The fleet must be developed. And here we are talking about more than the development of technology only. The physical and intellectual infrastructures also have to be built," she said, then added: "I hope we can also satisfy the needs of the land troops soon."

The new military

"The new military is affordable, well-equipped, capable of allied cooperation, capability based, modular, rapidly deployable and manoeuvrable," emphasized the state secretary, who also told the audience that the decision on the further developments of the Hungarian Defence Forces also specifies so-called ’ambition levels’. In line with the NATO recommendations, the target is that 50 per cent of personnel assigned to operations should be capable of participating in allied operations, and 10 per cent of them should actually participate in an operation or mission. Ágnes Vadai also spoke about the special capabilities of the defence forces, such as water purification, the team of surgeons, the EOD capability, theatre airlift operations, or the biolabor. "I am convinced that in the coming decades, the cause of conflicts will be water, not oil. Those who are in possession of clean water will be important components of the allied system in the long run." The state secretary added: the fact that the NATO Heavy Airlift Wing has been established in Pápa is also extremely important.

As regards the 3D radars, Ágnes Vadai said that the construction of two 3D radars has been completed – in Békéscsaba and Bánkút – and the third one has become the subject of political battles. "The radar is of key importance from the point of view of not only the Hungarian Defence Forces but from the point of view of the civilian air safety of the Republic of Hungary as well."

About the international commitmens of Hungary the state secretary said that currently the country is present in missions in 13 regions, of which the theatres in the Balkans and Afghanistan are the most important ones. "We have to undertake an ever-growing role in mission operations, among which the role we will be playing in Africa is especially important. Therefore it is essential that the personnel of the Hungarian Defence Forces participate in various international exercises." Ágnes Vadai mentioned the NATO crisis management exercise as an example.

The honour of officers, code of ethics

The state secretary also spoke about the question of public procurement. Like she said, in 2004, after the EU accession, an act on public procurement was put into effect that specified the methods of equipment procurement for the Hungarian Defence Forces. "Be it an aircraft, boots, or potatoes, this is the act that has to be complied with. I urge the introduction of a code of ethics. Because even though our two biggest suppliers, the Development and Logistics Agency and the Infrastructural Agency have public procurement regulations, there are no regulations on the other side. The best way to facilitate the transparency of public procurement is to have a code of ethics in place just like in the Kingdom of Norway. Because it is not worth throwing away the honour of officers, not even for all the money in the world. It has to be made clear now that observing the law is only observing the law, but beyond that, there is a moral norm that also has to be observed by the officers. Those who fail to do that are not worthy of belonging to the Hungarian Defence Forces, and the strictest action must be taken against them," said Ágnes Vadai, who finally brought up the issue of elderly affairs. "Keeping contact with elderly people and taking care of them is important. The young should learn from the experiences of the elderly."

We are the NATO

At the end of lecture the students had an opportunity to ask questions. First Lieutenant Colonel Dr. Gábor Szarka, the commander of the Student Branch asked Ágnes Vadai to tell the audience about career paths in the military. The state secretary told about this question that it is important to have career paths that can be planned in advance, "but we have to be aware that not everyone will become a general". Colonel (eng.) Dr. Kálmán Nagy, the chancellor of the university asked about the educational system of the university and the possibilities of professors. Ágnes Vadai said that in the past periods the ranks have been amortised, while even a lieutenant colonel has to meet many requirements. "It is an important task of future officers to stop this process," she emphasized. Her response to a student’s question about the weight of Hungary’s role in the NATO the state secretary said that Hungary is not only 93,000 square kilometres. "The Republic of Hungary is the complex entirety of democratic principles. Whenever we carry out a NATO task we do that for ourselves. When we serve in Afghanistan, we do that in order to prevent Afghan drugs reaching our country – but we are also working on other things, for example on a presentation like this, there could be a woman standing behind the pulpit in Afghanistan, and other women should be allowed to ask questions. We are the NATO – we have to protect our territory together with our allies, just like we have to help each other. Our participation in disaster prevention is also a good example of that," Ágnes Vadai said.