Major General Zoltán Somogyi
15:53 July 18, 2023Brigadier General Zoltán Somogyi was born on 27th February 1974 in Fehérgyarmat. He began his military service in August 1992 at the Military Command Collage in Szentendre. He graduated as an artillery officer with a BSc in Land Surveying Engineering in 1996. He served 8 years in a various artillery officer assignments including 4 years as Battery Commander within the HDF 5th Mechanized Infantry Brigade 5th Self Propelled Artillery Battalion in Debrecen. During his artillery officer carrier, he successfully completed the Battery Commander Course of the German Bundeswehr and gathered experiences also in the field of rocket artillery. In 2003 he was deployed to the position of the 2nd Company Commander of the Hungarian Guard and Security Battalion, KFOR Kosovo and in 2004 he assumed command of the Hungarian Guard and Security Contingent, KFOR Skopje.
In 2007, he was appointed to the position of Hungarian Joint Force Command J3 Staff Officer in Székesfehérvár and he was promoted to Major. In 2009, he was assigned as a Liaison Officer to the German Operations Command in Potsdam and to the German MOD Planning Staff in Berlin focused on Hungarian contribution to ISAF operation. In 2010, he graduated from the National Defense University with MSc degree in Military Leadership. In 2012 he graduated the 7th German National Joint Admiral and General Staff Course at the Bundeswehr Command & Staff Collage in Hamburg. Following that, he was appointed to the position of the Military Assistant to the Chief of Land Forces of the Hungarian Joint Force Command and he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. From 2013 to 2016, he served as the Head of Combat Support Branch G3 HDF JFC.
During this assignment in 2013-2014 he was deployed for seven months to Afghanistan as a senior advisor and head of a brigade level advisory team. In 2016, he was assigned to the position of Chief G37 HDF Joint Force Command. In 2017, his next appointment was at HDF JFC where he held the post of Chief J3/ACOS Operations and was promoted to the rank of Colonel.
From August 2018 he started and led the planning project of Headquarters Multinational Division Centre. He was appointed to Chief of Staff of the Headquarters Multinational Division Centre on 01 June 2020 and he was promoted to his current rank on the 20th of August 2020.
12 May 2022 – 17 May 2023 he served as Chief of Staff of EUFOR Force HQ in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Since 15 July 2023 he has been assuming the position Director of the General Staff Hungarian Defence Forces.
He is married to his wife Beatrix and lives in Várpalota.
Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky: the combat readiness of Hungarian armed forces must be the best
13:09 January 31, 2023
It is important that the combat readiness of Hungary’s armed forces be the best at all times – stated Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky in a video uploaded to the Facebook page of the government on Sunday, 29 January.
Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky: we are closely cooperating with Austria in all areas
13:04 January 31, 2023
“Hungary and Austria are good neighbors and maintain very close cooperation in almost all areas, including the field of the military and defence”, said the Minister of Defence after holding a discussion with his Austrian counterpart in Budapest on Monday, 30 January.
Hungarian Chief of Defence gives presentation at International Armoured Vehicles Conference in London
11:48 January 25, 2023
On 24 January, Lieutenant General Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi PhD, Chief of the General Staff of the Hungarian Defence Forces gave a presentation at the International Armoured Vehicles (IAVs) Conference, which was held with the participation of more than 60 speakers and more than 40 countries in London. Also in attendance at the event was Brigadier General János Somogyi, Deputy Director of Staff (DOS) Operations of the HDF General Staff.
National defence must be strengthened in all its segments
18:32 January 23, 2023
One important element in Hungary’s armed forces development program is the creation of the combat-worthy, strong armed forces, which conform with NATO’s concept for deterrence and are able to guarantee peace and the citizens’ security, said Brigadier General Dr. Imre Porkoláb, MoD Ministerial Commissioner for Defence Innovation at an international conference held with the title “Similarities, Differences and Possibilities of Cooperation in the Fields of Hungarian and Polish Armed Forces Development” at the Wacław Felczak Institute in Warsaw on 16 January.
Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky: Peace is of the utmost importance for Hungary and Serbia
18:23 January 23, 2023
Peace is of the utmost importance for Hungary and Serbia alike, and since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Hungary has been consistently drawn attention to truce and the attainment of peace, while Serbia agrees on the point that war can only bring bad luck for the smaller or medium-sized states of the region, and therefore its soonest possible end is in the interest of both countries, emphasized Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky in Belgrade on Friday, January 20.
The rejuvenation of HDF organizations is in progress
18:08 January 23, 2023
The process of rejuvenation has started in the Hungarian Defence Forces in the interest of Hungary’s security, so that we can pave the way for those young commanders who speak languages, have gained experiences on NATO courses and foreign missions, have outstanding physical stamina and will be the most capable ones to use modern military equipment and tactics. The current war situation warns us that it takes strength to achieve peace, and strength in turn requires modern, combat-worthy armed forces.
Hungarian Chief of Defence attends NATO session
14:07 January 20, 2023
On 18–19 January, leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the representatives of Finland and Sweden held a two-day meeting of the NATO Military Committee in Chiefs of Defence Session at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. The event was attended by Lieutenant General Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi PhD, Chief of the HDF General Staff, who also met the Hungarian soldiers serving in Belgium and gave them recognitions.
New Commander assumes command of EUFOR Operation Althea
13:51 January 20, 2023
On 18 January 2023, Major General Helmut Habermayer assumed command of EUFOR Operation Althea. At the Change of Command ceremony, the Hungarian Ministry of Defence was represented by Gábor Gion, MoD State Secretary for Strategic Analysis and Human Resources and Lieutenant General Zsolt Sándor, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Hungarian Defence Forces.
HDF organizations to be rejuvenated
13:47 January 20, 2023
“In an age of dangers, the Government of Hungary considers the security of the Hungarian people as its top priority. In parallel with the procurement of modern military technology, the organizational transformation of the armed forces is also under way. In this work, we have now reached the threshold of a new era. The personnel of the Hungarian Defence Forces must be renewed as well”, said Minister of Defence Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky at his annual assessment conference held in the Budapest Whale in the morning of Tuesday, 17 January.
The Skylark procurement project has come to an end
14:42 January 11, 2023
Pro Patria Electronics Ltd., a Hungarian military electronics service provider, held a project completion ceremony of the Skylark-1 LEX and Skylark-3 unmanned aerial reconnaissance systems’ delivery on Tuesday, December 6th, at the Stefánia Palace - Honvéd Cultural Centre in Budapest. At the event, Major General Ferenc Kajári, Group Chief of the Military National Security Service Reconnaissance Group Headquarters, praised the military force development project carried out in cooperation between the Budapest-based company and the Israeli defence company Elbit.