On 26 October, the NATO Joint Force Command Naples (NATO JFCNP) organized the 2023 Southern Commanders’ Coordination Conference (SCCC). The Hungarian Defence Forces were represented at the event by Brigadier General Balázs Szloszjár, Commander, HDF General Staff Joint Operations Command and Control Centre.
Following the NATO Summit held in Vilnius this July, the SCCC has been the first opportunity for Admiral Stuart B. Munsch, Commander, NATO Joint Force Command Naples to review the regional plan of the southern region and the regional vigilance activities together with high-level military leaders of the countries involved. During the discussions, attention was being paid to important topics such as the threat level of the southern region of the Alliance – including challenges caused by terrorist groups and those emerging from cyberspace, the demand of future multi-domain operations that integrate the whole spectrum of warfare, the synchronization of national defence plans with the regional plan, the preparation of the battlefield as an essential prerequisite for implementing the plans, the operations led by the JFCNP (KFOR, NATO Mission in Iraq [NMI], NATO Support to Earthquake Relief Efforts in Türkiye [NSERET]), as well as the program of exercises to train the forces in support of achieving and maintaining their designated state of readiness. The participants of the conference also emphasized the need for coordinating information exchange and strategic communication.
Following the close of the conference, speaking at a staff meeting held for the Hungarian personnel serving at the JFCNP, Brigadier General Balázs Szloszjár informed those present about the ongoing capability development projects of the Hungarian Defence Forces, the changes in operations currently under way, the organizational corrections made in the recent period, as well as the superiors’ expectations about permanent unarmed foreign service. He also presented a recognition to Senior Warrant Officer András Kovács. SWO Kovács, who is serving as analyst at the NATO Strategic Direction-South HUB (NSD-S HUB), received the 1st Grade of the Service Medal for NCOs and enlisted personnel after 30 years.
