BRATISLAVA, June 5, (WEBNOVINY) – Defense Minister Lubomir Galko (liberal SaS) said on air of the Slovak Television’s (STV) political discussion program ‚O 5 Minut 12‘ (‚5 Minutes to 12‘) on Sunday that the conduct of the Christian-Democratic Movement (KDH) has been unacceptable recently. He thus reacted to the situation at the last parliamentary session, when the Christian Democrats did not support several draft bills from the SaS workroom. Galko admitted that the liberals did not support a KDH draft, either, but he believes that was different. “KDH rejected drafts that had been agreed-upon in advance, it was not just the bill on joint physical custody, but also the draft on undertaking business, or an amending proposal to reduce fines related to vaccinations. Those were issues agreed-upon in advance, where the KDH promised their support,” Galko further said on the discussion program. He added that a correct partner does not do such things. Galko claims that the SaS announced early enough that it would not support the KDH’s draft revision of the law on gambling. “It is a matter of correctness”, he stated.
With regard to the defense sector, Galko said that it is a difficult patient that needs a surgeon, and not a folk healer. According to him, the ministry has for long been under-budgeted. “The ministry is currently in a condition where it fulfills contracts only with great limitations,” he commented. Galko pointed out that unless strategic decisions are adopted, the defense can collapse in a few years. There are six solution models prepared, from the optimum one with preserving the current situation and modernization if the ministry gets a budget of 1.56 percent of GDP next year, to the most critical one requiring drastic measures, if the 2012 budget is the proposed 0.98 percent of GDP.
The strategic evaluation of the sector shows that 70 percent of land technical equipment are about to or have already reached its service life. “Unless we do something about it, it will be ninety percent within three years,” he said. Galko sees the air defense as another problem, where 70 percent of the budget is consumed by air defense using supersonic fighter jets. As the result of a shortage of funding, the air defense using supersonic jets might have to be dissolved. The minister, however added that no NATO member has ever willingly given up on this air defense, while the decision would be irreversible and could not be resurrected for the next 20 to 30 years.
Galko was reacting to criticism of his predecessor on the post of the defense minister Jaroslav Baska, according to whom the defense sector has not been developing any activity since Galko took up the post. He pointed out that Baska left behind uncovered contracts worth EUR 150 million as well as threats of international arbitration proceedings.
SITA