Ministerial Visit to the Sarajevo Mission

The Minister of Defence was received by H.E. Krisztián Pósa, the Ambassador of Hungary accredited to Sarajevo, who provided information in a restricted discussion about the security policy tendencies in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and about the other challenges. The Ambassador pointed out that due to the extremely complex ethnic situation, the internal divisions may largely influence the country’s Euroatlantic aspirations. At the same time, he emphasised that the role of the external influencing factors is also significant, the intensification of which may pose religious and economic difficulties for the country.

Following the discussion with the Ambassador, Minister of Defence was briefed by Brig.-Gen. Gábor Horváth, Chief of Staff of EUFOR in Camp Butmir, about the task system, structure of the forces involved in the operation, and the main factors of the operational environment affecting the military activity. István Sipos, the Political Advisor (POLAD) of EUFOR gave an analysis of the country’s extremely complex ethnic and inner political situation. In what follows, Col. Tibor Papp, NATO HQ Chief of Staff presented the Headquarters’ structure, main responsibilities and the possible directions of its future activities.

Subsequently, Tibor Benkő had a plenary talk with Major General Martin Dorfer, Commander EUFOR (COMEUFOR). Major General Dorfer highly praised the preparedness and the high-level, committed task-execution of the Hungarian soldiers. During the discussion Tibor Benkő said that the stability of the Western Balkans will remain a number one priority for Hungary. The fact that two-thirds of the soldiers serving abroad carry out their tasks in the Western Balkans region is a good example for our commitment. The Minister stressed that Hungary remains committed to supporting the mandate of the operation and will continue to provide its contribution to the operation in the future, too.

In the meeting with Brig.-Gen. Marti J. Bissell, the Commander of NATO HQ Sarajevo, Tibor Benkő inquired about the perspectives of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s NATO-accession. Madam Brigadier General said that NATO has sent a very positive message to the country with the adoption of the Annual National Program, but the reconciliation of the positions of the ethnic groups is essential for further progress.

Thereafter, as Christmas season approaches, Minister of Defence held a staff meeting for the soldiers of the 22nd Rotation of the HFD EUFOR Contingent (EUFOR-22 HUNCON) in Camp Butmir. He gave a presentation about the most important changes affecting the Hungarian Defence Forces, and the details of the agreement concluded with the interest representation organs. He noted that Hungary is at present one of the safest countries, thanks to the Hungarian soldiers serving at the borders and in the missions abroad, who also give an exemplary contribution to the success of the EUFOR-mission. The experiences and lessons learnt in the international peace support operations are vital from the aspect of home defence, therefore we are grateful for the selfless service, which our soldiers perform day after day in the interest of the stability of the Balkan region – Tibor Benkő pointed out.

On the second day of the Sarajevo visit, Madam Defence Minister Marina Pendeš received the Defence Minister of Hungary. After their negotiation a joint press conference was held, the priority topics of which were the security situation in the Western Balkans and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the bilateral military relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Hungary. The negotiating parties said that an important field of co-operation is the support provided for the Euroatlantic integration process of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a visible sign of which is that as from 2019 Hungary’ Sarajevo Embassy will assume the responsibilities of the NATO-contact Embassy. During the discussion Tibor Benkő welcomed the NATO decision, according to which the Alliance is ready to adopt the Annual National Program of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which represents a definite, but initial step on the road to NATO-Membership. The Minister of Defence stressed that Hungary is ready to give every support in this area, whether the exchange of experiences related to force transformation, or the enhancement of co-operation in the field of education and training.