Author: vibration

Slovak Innovation Cluster for Defence and Security

Posted on by vibration

Estónsko, 6.10.2023 / Maďarsko, 12.10.2023/ Česká republika, 9.11.2023

International cooperation is a prerequisite for technological development and provides external know-how that can be used to strengthen and improve a country’s innovation capacity. ICE recognises the added value of such a collaborative approach. As part of its project “Slovak Innovation Cluster for Defence and Security”, which aims to map and assess the most appropriate strategy for the creation of a defence cluster in Slovakia, ICE representatives met with representatives of countries and organisations whose geographical proximity, characteristics and structural set-up are similar to Slovakia and whose excellence in the field of cluster establishment and management is unquestionable. Special attention was paid to 3 countries including Estonia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. Estonia is one of the leading innovators in the field of defence, including dual-use technologies. ICE representatives met with representatives of the Estonian Defence Cluster, a non-governmental organisation that helps to increase the innovative potential of the modern defence industry, as well as the economy as a whole.

In Hungary, representatives of the Ministry of Defence briefed ICE representatives on Hungary’s approach to defence and innovation. When it comes to the Czech Republic, ICE representatives met with the representatives of the DSIA who explained the structure of cooperation between the Czech government and DSIA as well as the organisation’s role in the defence innovation ecosystem in Czechia. Besides the 3 target countries, ICE also devoted special attention to Denmark as one of the pioneers in the acknowledgement of the importance of the support of innovation and the top leaders in this field. When it comes to Denmark, ICE representatives attended a webinar with Klaus Bolving, Business Development Director, and former CEO of the Danish defence cluster, CenSec (Center for Defence, Space & Security). All the visits and the webinar with the Danish representative, Klaus Bolving, provided an overview of the different strategies applied in establishing and managing defence clusters as well as fostering innovation. We will use this information and incorporate it into our analysis and recommendations to the Slovak Ministry of Defence.

The project “Slovak Innovation Cluster for Defence and Security” to explore the possibilities of establishing and operating it is supported by the MoD of the Slovak Republic.

     

Life Cycle Management of Military Equipment: Experiences, Expectations and Opportunities for Collaboration

Posted on by vibration

Bratislava, 27.9.2023

“Procurement of military equipment represents not only a potential improvement of defence capabilities, but most of the time also a significant burden on the budget of the Ministry of Defence and public finances as a whole. When assessing the price, the public usually encounters only the so-called acquisition price of the equipment, which often does not take into account the total life cycle including service, logistics, training, but also the cost of the actual decommissioning of the equipment from the use of the armed forces. Such a comprehensive view then shows a much more realistic view of the public requirements. It is therefore imperative that the complex process of assessing and procuring new military equipment is addressed through the lens of tracking all costs, which can give us a much more accurate/precise perception of the total costs required.

There are a number of modern approaches that can help reduce and streamline processes within the military equipment life cycle. The Institute for Central Europe (ICE) has therefore prepared an expert symposium which, in addition to highlighting this neglected yet critically important aspect of armed forces modernisation, will also discuss other options for reducing costs and streamlining processes within the overall lifecycle of military (especially land-based) equipment, including international cooperation. It is international cooperation that could be one of the key solutions in reducing overall costs throughout the life cycle of military equipment. The event was therefore attended by the highest representatives of the Ministry of Defence of the Slovak Republic, headed by the Secretary of State and Chief of the General Staff of the Slovak Armed Forces, the Military Envoy of the Federal Republic of Germany, as well as a delegation from the Czech Ministry of Defence and representatives of state industrial enterprises and private companies.

The event entitled “Life Cycle Management of Military Technology: Experiences, Expectations and Opportunities for Cooperation” was held thanks to the support of the Ministry of Defence of the Slovak Republic and Rheinmetall MAN.

 

    

 

Conference – European asylum policy after Ukraine

Posted on by vibration

Bratislava, 12.-13.7.2023

On 13 July, the conference European Asylum Policy after Ukraine was organised by the Institute for Central Europe in cooperation with the University of Liège and the University of Paris Cité in the framework of the ACRONYM project. The aim of the conference was to bring new perspectives on migration in the context of the ongoing war in Ukraine and the war-induced refugee crisis.

Four panel discussions were attended by MPs, representatives of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, migration policy experts, representatives of NGOs, academics and experts in the field of migration, who exchanged views on the topic and highlighted the gaps and shortcomings that hinder the adoption of effective decisions in the field of migration. The conference also highlighted the problem of politicians’ abuse of migration and emphasised the need to de-politicise the issue and reflect on migration through the prism of rationality based on facts.

The Central European Migration Research Hub was also launched at the conference as a virtual platform that will bring together and connect academics and experts in the field of migration from the Central European region and beyond. The platform is also intended to serve as a venue for sharing academic publications, migration and asylum projects, opportunities for collaboration, as well as various migration-related events and conferences, in order to facilitate networking and bringing people in the CEE region together on the topic. In the second part of the conference, the academics presented their scientific studies in which they highlighted the importance of the social and health perspective in the implementation of an effective asylum policy, the issue of discrimination against refugees who are members of minorities, and presented projects implemented by Slovak universities in the context of migration.

 

     

    

Economic diary

Posted on by vibration

Praha, 2023

“Martin Fedor, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ICE, participated in a symposium of the Economic Daily focused on technology and defence strategy of the Czech Republic. The symposium was opened by Czech Defence Minister, Jana Černochová, who stressed the need to adopt and support a triple innovation spiral approach – linking the state, the private sector and academia – to acquire the defence capabilities and technologies needed to maintain a technological edge over our rivals. Martin Fedor stressed the need for investment in R&D and technology within the defence sector, as this is a prerequisite not only for maintaining technological progress but also a condition for future economic growth. In addition, he pointed to the need to find new financial and political instruments within the EU to support the ambitions set out.”

 

     

 

The European Union concerns us

Posted on by vibration

Bratislava, 26.4.2023

“We took part in a panel discussion – The European Union in the context of contemporary challenges – organised by the European Parliament Office in Slovakia in cooperation with the Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences of Comenius University. The discussion is part of a series of discussions aimed at bringing the EU and its different policy areas closer to the citizens of Slovakia. The discussion focused on the EU enlargement policy. In addition, the discussion focused on the problem of disinformation campaigns in Slovakia in the context of the contemporary challenges. The panel discussion focused on the need to speed up the EU enlargement process, including the need for a treaty reform. Martin Fedor pointed out that if the Western Balkans are not integrated into the EU, it will be a space for the great power appetites of non-European state actors, in particular Russia and China. Discussants also agreed on the need for effective action against the disinformation that is disrupting our societies, as illustrated by the example of Brexit.
        

Climate Security in Central Europe: Challenges and Opportunities

Posted on by vibration

Online panel discussion organized within the ACCESS – Addressing the Challenges of Climate, Defence and Security Nexus project, 25.11.2022

The discussion focused on the impacts of climate change on security and defence and featured presentations by leading global experts on the topic, as well as representatives from NATO and the Ministry of Defence of the SR.

 

The future of air and missile defence of the Slovak Republic

Posted on by vibration

Expert roundtable discussion, organized within the framework of the project of the same name in Bratislava, 24.6.2022

Round table on the topic of effective provision of air defence of the Slovak Republic with the aim to create a space for professional, open and inclusive discussion of relevant participants in the process of modernisation of air defence systems of the Slovak Republic. The involvement of senior government officials (State Secretary of the MoD Marián Majer) was crucial in order to draw attention to the importance of the discussed topic and the commitment to adequate financial coverage of defence needs in general. In order to comprehensively assess all aspects of the process, the discussion was attended by key representatives of the MoD SR, the General Staff of the Slovak Armed Forces and the Air Force of the Slovak Republic, together with selected representatives of industry and academia, including the professional public.

 

         

 

Get info on disinfo

Posted on by vibration

Workshop organized within the project Disinformation: Raising Awareness and Building Resilience, Banská Bystrica, 1.12.2021

The workshop at the Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica, primarily intended for university students, consisted of a discussion with political leaders and experts on the topic of disinformation and a strategy game Fight for the Truth, which ICE prepared as part of the Get Info on Disinformation guide for schools. The aim of the event was to raise young people’s awareness of and resilience to disinformation. In view of the pandemic situation, the workshop was held in a hybrid format.

 

   

Propaganda tools of Russian actors on social networks – how to recognise and counter them?

Posted on by vibration

Workshop organized within the framework of the project Strengthening Slovakia’s Resilience to Hybrid Threats from Russian Actors – Disinformation Campaigns on Social Networks, Bratislava, 7.10.2021

Workshop focusing on identifying common characteristics of disinformation campaigns in the countries most affected by disinformation campaigns (Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia). Disinformation experts from the above mentioned countries discussed with representatives of the MoD, MoI SR, Police SR, SIS, academia and civil society the lessons learned from the Russian disinformation actors abroad in comparison with the experience of the Slovak Republic. The aim of the discussion was also to look for ways to strengthen the resilience of Slovak entities to such disinformation campaigns.

 

     

     

 

Disinformation changes society and threatens the state

Posted on by vibration

On the first of December, the event “Get info on disinformation” took place at the University of Matej Bel in Banská Bystrica (UMB), the aim of which was to raise awareness among Slovak students about controlled and targeted disinformation campaigns, their nature and impact on society. The workshop was organised by the Institute for Central Europe, c.a. in cooperation with UMB thanks to the support of NATO Public Diplomacy Department.

The event featured a panel discussion with Miriam Lexmann, Member of the European Parliament, Marián Majer, State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence of the Slovak Republic, Martin Klus, State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, as well as Jozef Michal Mintál – academic from the Department of Security Studies at UMB and Peter Köles, Head of the Strategic Communication Department at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.  

In relation to disinformation campaigns, MEP Lexmann stressed in particular the fact that the managers of the largest social networks are aware of the fact that their platforms greatly contribute to the spread of disinformation and fake news. Nevertheless, they tolerate algorithmic presets in a form that encourages the spread of radical and false information.  

In this context, State Secretary Marián Majer stressed that disinformation campaigns nowadays no longer represent only a misleading of the public, but a real threat to the democratic character of the states that are most exposed to them. He stressed that building the natural resilience of our fellow citizens is the only way we can combat disinformation, apart from responding quickly to information operations.  

According to Martin Klus, State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we are facing a “serious challenge” in Europe due to disinformation campaigns, and in his opinion “it is high time to take action”. He stressed that there are more than 1 700 disinformation sites and groups operating in the Slovak internet space on Facebook alone. Equally alarming, he said, is the fact that up to 56 percent of Slovaks believe in disinformation, which is the highest in Central and Eastern Europe, according to surveys.  

In the second part of the event, students took part in a simulation game called “Fight for the truth”, in which they had the opportunity to practice planning and implementing a disinformation campaign as well as a defence campaign in two opposing teams.  

As part of the project, the Institute for Central Europe will also produce a “Hybrid Threat Handbook”, which will be aimed primarily at young people and university students, but also at the wider general public.