EDA Chief Executive Jiří Šedivý visited Hungary on 23-24 February for high level talks with Defence Policy Director Gergely Németh, Chief of Staff Major General Tibor Bozó, as well as the national capability director, Major Gen. László Sticz, the deputy national armaments director, ret. General László Tömböl, and the research and technology director, Brigadier General István Filótás. A scheduled meeting with Defence Minister Tibor Benkő had to be cancelled due to the events in Ukraine. The trip to Budapest was part of Mr Šedivý’s ‘tour des capitales’ around all EDA Member States.
The discussions with Defence Policy Director Németh mainly focused on Hungary’s involvement in EDA’s current and future activities, the need to drive defence innovation in Europe and the prospect of reinforcing EDA's role in supporting Member States in this area, the contributions the Armed Forces can make to the EU’s Green Deal policy, the state of play of the ongoing Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD) cycle 2021-2022 and the follow-up on the findings and recommendations of the first CARD report presented in November 2020, the state of play in the PESCO implementation, the functioning of the European Defence Fund (EDF) as well as the preparations for the EU’s Strategic Compass to be approved in March. Hungary provided a comprehensive presentation of the results and future ambitions of the Zrínyi force modernisation programme and its commitment to cooperation in EU capability development. The Chief Executive was impressed with Hungarian progress and outlined the ways in which Hungary can build on that progress and cooperate even more efficiently at a European level.
Hungary participates in 10 EDA projects & programmes including the Agency’s helicopter trainings & exercises, the EU Multimodal Transport Hubs programme, the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear defence Surveillance as a Service (CBRN SaaS) project, the Multinational Modular Medical Unit (3MU) programme, the Joint Deployable Exploitation and Analysis Laboratory (JDEAL) or the Agency’s research project into Fuel Cells for Soldier Systems (FUSS) for which Hungary is even the lead nation. The total value of EDA programmes and projects in which Hungary participates currently stands at €37 million (Feb.2022).
"I am particularly grateful for Hungary’s active role in the Agency’s helicopter training and exercise programme. We can count on the country’s important support in this domain since many years. In 2017, Hungary hosted one of our flagship helicopter exercises, called ‘Fire Blade’, and it will host it again later this year, in June, for a second time. Hungary’s leadership in support of our helicopter exercise programme is very much appreciated, and I can only thank the Minister for this. The country also acts as the lead country for an important collaborative defence research project managed by EDA that is looking into the development of new, enhanced soldier-sized fuel cell energy sources. Another example of Hungary’s engagement is its participation in the CBRN Surveillance as a Service project which was the first PESCO project for which EDA’s direct support was requested and which is now run in the framework of the Agency. The project has even further developed into a Reconnaissance Surveillance System (CBRN RSS) project, supported by Hungary and four other countries, under the European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP)", Mr Šedivý commented.
Hungary’s Defence Policy Director, Dr. Németh welcomed the delegation of EDA led by the Chief Executive, Jiří Šedivý, for a two-day visit in Budapest, and delivered the apologies of the Hungarian minister of defence, who could not meet the Chief Executive due to his duties related to the sudden worsening of the crisis in and around Ukraine. "Due to the difficulties caused by the pandemic, this was Mr. Šedivý’s first official visit to Hungary since he assumed his position in 2020. The Chief Executive’s trip to Hungary was very much appreciated in this very challenging and busy period. The timing was also relevant in light of the substantial progress we are witnessing in the Common Security and Defence Policy of the EU. The discussion on the Strategic Compass is ongoing, and Hungary is contributing to this document with an initiative in the field of capability development. We believe that the Compass should define a clear level of ambition for CSDP. With EU and NATO membership as the cornerstones of Hungarian defence policy, our country is a committed contributor to Euro-Atlantic security. Hungary highly appreciates the Agency’s work on the defence initiatives, namely the Capability Development Plan (CDP), the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) and the Coordinated Annual Review (CARD). These initiatives will certainly improve collaboration among Member States and help them identify capability development opportunities. Hungary’s comprehensive Zrínyi Defence and Force Development Programme aims at modernising and revitalising the Hungarian defence forces. This wide-ranging development programme gives us the opportunity to benefit from the EU defence initiatives, and it has positively affected the entire Hungarian defence sector, giving us more room for further cooperation. The modernisation programme underpins Hungary’s efforts to become a more active player on the international stage as well, including within the framework of the Agency. As a founding member of PESCO, Hungary is committed to its successful implementation. After the 4th wave of PESCO project generation, we are now involved in 28 PESCO projects, with a special focus on the EUROSIM PESCO project led by Hungary. EUROSIM will be among those 26 PESCO projects, out of 60 projects altogether, which are foreseen to reach their full operational capability by 2025 and produce tangible results. EDA’s support to EU Member States is indisputable. The Agency, with its broad network and expertise, is an essential platform for developing and improving military capabilities through collaboration. We ensure the Agency of our continued support and cooperation We are looking forward to the next CARD cycle as well as to the Agency’s future work on defence innovation", he said.