BRATISLAVA, April 4, (WEBNOVINY) – The NATO international crisis management exercise CMX 11, in which Slovakia will also participate, has been postponed until the fall. The reason behind it is the current situation in Libya, where NATO and in particular the North Atlantic Council have to devote full attention to resolving the conflict. Defense Minister Lubomir Galko commented that Slovakia was prepared for the exercise, which was to take place in late March, but they understood the reasons for its postponement. “Libya’s restoration is a priority for all member states,” he said. The exercise should take place at the turn of September and October, reported Defense Ministry’s spokesman Ivan Rudolf.
The planned NATO crisis management exercise will focus on training collective defense solutions under Article 5 of the Washington Treaty. The fictitious scenario is not targeted against any concrete country. The experience and recommendations will be used in further development and perfection of NATO crisis management, including real crises and commanding operations. This exercise is a stress test for the security units of each participating state. NATO considers testing the crisis management procedures within collective defense important. Previous exercises focused on different sorts of crises, mainly on peace-keeping missions beyond NATO member states. The scenario of CMX 11 is based on the new NATO strategic concept adopted at the summit in Lisbon.
All twenty-eight member states will take part in the exercise. NATO will also invite non-members Finland and Sweden. Representatives of UN, EU, OSCE and the international committee of the Red Cross will serve as observers.
As a rule, CMX exercises take place annually. Defense Minister Lubomir Galko should coordinate the exercise in Slovakia. The Interior Ministry, Foreign Affairs Ministry, the Cabinet Office and the SIS Slovak intelligence service are to be involved in the exercise, too.
SITA