Email communication from Mrs. Dobroslava Saad, dated January 27, 2003. In addition to cooperation on multinational projects, both countries are currently focusing on the modernisation of their own armed forces. Under a legal exemption included in the 1998 law and left in place following revisions to the law in 2002, no license is required for the transit of military equipment through Slovakia if the equipment is on the territory of the Slovak Republic for a period no longer than seven days. It is not known to what extent this loophole was abused over the years, but it likely influenced the decision of arms traffickers to repair combat helicopters in Slovakia before exporting them to embargoed Liberia. bw*Im 7iBk#[ membership, noted that the country was not fully living up to its commitment to follow E.U. Given that there are no licensing requirements for such transactions, arms shipments through Slovakia are subject only to civil aviation and customs controls. Human Rights Watch telephone interview with a Slovak diplomat, October 14, 2001. The country has been a point of origin or transit for arms deliveries to human rights abusers and countries in conflict, as well as to suspected illegal destinations. Passed emergency amendment in December 2001 to close the refurbishment and repair loophole. For example, maintain a list of transport operators and planes linked to illegal arms deliveries or suspected illicit trafficking and check all planes against that list. 317 Editorial: Arms Control: Irresponsibility and ignorance, Slovak Spectator; Santor, The Weapons Trade: Our Taboo, Narodna Obrodna; Peter Vavro, Weapons: Business Under the State Lamp, Narodna Obrodna, via WNC, January 16, 2002. ), RFE/RL, March 31, 1999; Milan Zitny, Ministerstvo dopravy SR potvrdzuje, ze Agroplast prepravoval cez bratislavske letisko zbrane do chorvatskej Rijeky (Slovak Ministry of Transport has confirmed Agroplast transferred arms to Croatian Rijeka through Bratislava airport), RFE/RL, April 20, 1999; Czech firm using Bratislava airport for illegal arms deals, CTK, via BBC Worldwide Monitoring, April 1, 1999.

200 Slovak Cabinet Meets for it Regular Session on Wednesday, SITA, September 16, 2002; TASR, September 15, 2002; Diplomats Will Decide on Trading in Arms, Pravda, September 24, 2002. Under the revised law (at article 16(1)), the ministry may request the opinion of the Ministries of Defense, Foreign Affairs, and Interior and the National Security Office and any responses are due within thirty days. Moreover, as will also be discussed, a number of important topics were not addressed in the law. Rules governing the trade in surplus weapons should be clearly delineated in arms trade legislation and implementing regulations, and should be fully applied to all categories of weapons, including sales of surplus small arms and heavy weapons. 201 Human Rights Watch interview with Ivan Korcok, then Director General, Security and International Organizations, Department of Arms Control, Disarmament, and Nonproliferation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, October 14, 2002; and Human Rights Watch interview with Ondrej Varacka, Ministry of Economy, October 15, 2002. This goal was since modified, and certain political and economic realities placed many of the country's conversion plans in limbo. In addition to pre-approval screening, the law also authorizes post-shipment verification of delivery. 250 Nicholson, Arms Dealer to be Investigated, Slovak Spectator.

If we do not export, all the others will gladly export (arms).326 Similarly, the director of the defense industry section of the Ministry of Economy, who had also served as an arms export licensing official, said that annual arms trade reports could not be prepared because it is not allowed by the law on secrecy, and parliamentary action would be required.327 Barring that constraint, he stated that he had no objection to preparing reports, as is the practice in several E.U. In Moldova, U.N. investigators found that such a loophole was used to avoid scrutiny of an attempted illegal arms shipment to Liberia, in violation of the embargo.

246 Ukrainian government request to Slovak authorities for judicial assistance, dated April 28, 1998, copy on file with Human Rights Watch. Very little of this investment, however, was directed toward the defense sector. Slovak authorities had been aware of the loophole for some time, and one former licensing official said that he repeatedly called for it to be closed.209 This was not done until the Liberia case drew particular attention to the loophole and gave urgency to the need for reform.210. 321 Ibid; Nicholson, Arms bureaucrats defend their private roles, Slovak Spectator. Although some Slovak defense companies have successfully exported their defense products to Western Europe and North America, domestic and regional customers continue to be the primary clients for the Slovak defense industry. 255 Human Rights Watch interview with Igor Kucer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bratislava, October 14, 2002. In September 2001 the Slovak government conducted a special audit of past arms deals to determine if any of its weapons might have been diverted to terrorist groups.228. 163-164. See also, Ukrainian government request to Slovak authorities for judicial assistance, dated April 28, 1998, copy on file with Human Rights Watch. For example, the Czech Republic is already cooperating with Italy in the PESCO project "Antidrone Defence". Code] criteria. In 2000, the Commission noted, there is concern that Slovakia needs to make more effort to ensure respect for sanctions and weapons exports to conflict zones. European Commission, Regular Report on Slovakias Progress Towards Accession, 2000, 2001, 2002. Most were direct exports of surplus weapons from Slovak stocks, but a considerable number were re-exports by Slovak companies of weapons from the arsenals of Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.302. 243 Report of the U.N. Panel of Experts on Liberia, para. The arms law, as amended in July 2002, gives greater emphasis to international obligations, although without clearly implementing otherwise nonbinding commitments. Our firms and Slovak nationals are suspected of various shenanigans and links to illegal arms deals.189, While they were evaluating Slovakias membership bid, the E.U. Of course, there are many more possible areas of cooperation. These cases, and the seriousness with which they are pursued, will provide important tests of Slovakias commitment to fully enforce arms embargoes and punish violators. The sole exception outlined in the law (at article 16(3)) is that a negative decision by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on an export license is binding, provided it responds within thirty days and offers a justification for its decision. Slovakias troubling arms trade record undermined the countrys international standing and presented a potential roadblock to membership in NATO and the E.U. 283 Human Rights Watch interview with Ondrej Varacka, Ministry of Economy, Bratislava, October 15, 2002. Ensure that licensing requirements for surplus and re-exported weapons are on par with those applicable to newly produced weapons. Police officials indicated that, from October 2001 to April 2002, they had declined to recommend two companies, both times on the basis of suspicions of company links to organized crime.237. 215 Nationalist Party Politician Charged with Illegal Arms Trafficking, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) Organized Crime and Terrorism Watch, July 1, 2003. 312 Human Rights Watch interview with Jozef Chroncok and Milos Jadud, Interior Ministry, March 7, 2003.

Slovakia also participates in information-sharing mechanisms through the Wassenaar Arrangement and the OSCE, but to date these have not been made public. envoy. Mrs. Saad denied that the flight was chartered by Slovtrans Air. Human Rights Watch also learned that the person who, until October 2001, headed the Ministry of Defense office responsible for disposal of surplus arms, as well as MOD procurement, sat on the board of a state-owned arms company. Controls should be extended to the activities of foreign arms brokers with respect to arms transactions in Slovakia. The official said that under secrecy requirements he was unable to comment on whether any arms transactions to Uganda had been approved since the diversion to Liberia took place. Some were described as fly-by-night firms likely set up to carry out only one or a very few deals.229 More established arms companies pushed for restrictions to be imposed to limit the number of firms. Licensing officials indicate that they are exercising more caution and checking arms deals more closely. The law also states that the Slovak government fully observes embargoes, and automatically refuses any arms deal that would violate an international arms embargo. In his contribution to the presentation, he said that he is a supporter of cooperation between the two countries, especially in the field of defence and security. Without a few exceptions, that was an area where they had often stagnated.

The U.N. panel of experts on Liberia, which uncovered the case, implicated the Pecos company and Slovak arms dealer Peter Jusko in the scheme to re-export the weapons. Explicitly incorporate human rights and international humanitarian law criteria into national arms trade law and make them binding on the government as well as on private actors. Slovak officials indicate that as of early 2002 there were more than one hundred registered arms trading firms, and that it was impossible for authorities to adequately check all of them. Jusko denied that he had anything to do with this deal and asserted that the person who signed on his behalf for the shipment in Uganda was misusing his name. 326 Arms trade: Too much information is harmful, SME, March 6, 2002, translated by Human Rights Watch. 0000014257 00000 n After the democratic revolution of 1989, Czechoslovakia committed itself to a severe reduction of arms production both for the practical reason of a shrinking market, and for the larger reason of the country's reputation in the international community. It is important to look for those areas where cooperation between Czech and Slovak defence and security industry companies would be beneficial. The Ukrainian television report on Joy Slovakias alleged mercenary activities said the company had representatives in Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and the UAE, as well as in the Republic of Congo (Congo-Brazzaville), where the mercenaries reportedly served as combat pilots. In December 2007, the Government adopted a new piece of legislation on offsets. This is somewhat ironic, since the favored treatment accorded the defense sector under the Communist regime prior to 1989 made the defense sector the most technologically advanced of the country's industries, this despite the fact that the defense sector accounted for only 4% of net industrial output in 1988, the peak year of defense production. 305 NATOs allies in Slovakia, Janes Intelligence Digest, December 20, 2002. 280 Human Rights Watch interview with Ondrej Varacka, Ministry of Economy, Bratislava, April 12, 2002, and October 15, 2002. 0000016577 00000 n 239 Report of the U.N. Panel of Experts on Liberia, para. In practice, however, it exercised decision-making authority, with the Ministry of Economy issuing licenses only on the basis of consensual decisions by the commission. Firm to Sue Czech State, CTK. 233 Zubo, Import Licenses Prevail, Hospodarske Noviny. It does not report to parliament which arms exports it approves, nor does it have a mechanism for informing parliament in advance of pending deals to allow for their review. Knoema, an Eldridge business, is the premier data platform and the most comprehensive source of global decision-making data in the world. Its first expressed goal in January 1990 was to end its weapons exports entirely and to halt tank production by the end of 1990. This press report attributes the information to investigative journalist Brian Johnson-Thomas, misidentified in the article as a U.N. 297 Weapons deals: State has few reasons not to approve, Slovak Spectator. The Information Department of the Ministry of Economy apparently felt that by keeping their names confidential it was protecting them from any outside efforts to influence their decisions.204, Ultimately, as noted, the Ministry of Economy in all cases makes the final decision on individual arms licenses and under the revised law has the power to overrule the recommendation of either or both advisory bodies, unless the Ministry of Foreign Affairs opposes an application. In 2001, according to statistics issued by the Ministry of Economy, sixty-six companies were active (selling weapons worth a total of 4.33 billion SKK or nearly $90 million to fifty-two countries). For example, a former Slovak licensing official told Human Rights Watch that the name of Joy Slovakia had come up in connection with attempted arms deals, in which people associated with Joy Slovakia had tried to broker arms transactions via other companies.248 Moreover, under the government elected in 1998, Pecos, the company established in Guinea by some of the partners in Joy Slovakia (see above), made at least one attempt to secure an export license, according to a source close to Slovak arms export control authorities. Zitny, Bratislava - letecky uzol v obchode so zbranami?, RFE/RL. Under the revised law, traders and brokers are to refrain from any deals that would harm Slovakias interests, violate Slovakias international obligations, or damage the interests of international organizations. The vaguely worded provision provided that active improvement relations under conditional system or the passive improvement relations was not subject to licensing.208 This applied to the repair and upgrading of military equipment.

In early 2002 a top customs official responsible for overseeing weapons investigations was given a seat on the government licensing committee. 0000008274 00000 n For example, the E.U.

component of the Slovak economy. To the contrary, the available information suggests Ugandan authorities did not take into consideration their obligations to the exporter. :2d32Z1A^c}O)G):eaS; ogmz~)7EES]~X$6!.]&ca+B~pjO's:>. 0000800089 00000 n The article implicates the SIS in illegal arms sales, use of unauthorized wiretaps, and a closer alliance with Russian intelligence than with its NATO counterparts.

230 Human Rights Watch interview with Lubomir Gazak, then-President, and Jozef Kovacik, Executive Director, Association of the Defense Industry of the Slovak Republic, Trencin, April 16, 2002; Tom Nicholson, Arms traders face new hurdle, May 13-19, 2002. Surplus tanks sold to Angola, on the other hand, were said to have earned some 700,000 SKK (approximately $15,000) a piece.297 A senior MOD official said Slovakia was able to sell only a few of the more than twenty surplus MiG-21 fighter planes it had on offer in the late 1990s, and that the cost of dismantling the rest was 150,000 SKK (approximately $3000) per unit.298 Selling the weapons not only spares the government the added expense of storage or destruction, it also earns income for the government.

Code) that Slovakia was entitled to engage in the arms trade with any country so long as no explicit international prohibition on arms trading with that country had been imposed.289. 23-12-2018 18:36:52 ZULU, Association of the Defence Industry of the Slovak Republic, SARIO, Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency, Defense Industrial Conversion: Background, Experience, and Possibilities for Central Europe. 0000016070 00000 n 308 Those who made such statements nonetheless felt the allegations printed in Janes were presented in a somewhat exaggerated manner. The problems are serious, however, and several areas still require attention. At the same time, Jaroslav Na emphasised that the basis of good cooperation is not only the closeness of the two nations, but also the mutual benefits of cooperation. Patriot II 4x4 New armoured vehicle on Tatra chassis, CSG companies will sell wheeled armoured vehicles Pandur II to Indonesia, The Ministry of Defence proposes an amendment to the Constitution - asking for a simpler procedure for sending Armed Forces abroad, Articles |Companies |Events |Project FFF |Military profession |Czech Army | Contact, 2022 CZDEFENCE.com Czech Army & Defence Magazine | info@czdefence.com | Nastaven cookies, Created by Plugo - e-commerce websites, webdesign, Increase in firepower for the 4th Rapid Deployment Brigade, European Heavy Military Equipment at Eurosatory 2022, Rheinmetall industrial partnerships set to bring benefits to Slovakia, Bosnia could become the site of a new conflict in the Balkans, experts say. 0000016701 00000 n 22, sec. 0000013142 00000 n Adopted legal changes to clarify arrangements for prolonging arms licenses. The presentation of Czech companies from the defence and security industry took place within the framework of the Project for the Promotion of Economic Diplomacy (PROPED). Code of Conduct on Arms Exports, which Slovakia signed on to as an E.U. Extraterritorial controls on Slovak arms dealers should be further elaborated, as the July 2002 change imposing such controls left unclear how they are to be implemented in practice. 266 Flight documentation, copies on file with Human Rights Watch. As noted, the revised law declared the Ministry of Economy the ultimate decision-making authority and established that the various ministries will be consulted, with consensus required for approval of general trading licenses and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs exercising veto power in the case of individual arms export permits. In 2001 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs circulated a document informing government officials about the E.U. and NATO let their concerns be known, if quietly. Export controls are now much stronger, and the US is regularly consulted in advance of questionable sales. Slovakia also has undertaken international commitments with respect to arms export controls. The Slovak arms licensing commission was disbanded in early 2002 and reconstituted to eliminate conflicts of interest among its members. Ibid. The government maintains that it respects and takes into account the principles of the E.U. While the Czech Republic was the center of most of the country's weapons production during the pre-World War II era, most of the arms production which had developed since World War II was located in the Slovak Republic, which had been the more underdeveloped of the two republics, and which had about one-third of the country's population. It covers a category of claimed military material addressed under another law, without offering further explanation. Thoroughly investigate suspicious cases, including those from the past, and prosecute violators. The decision to locate so much of the defense industry in Slovakia was made after the Communists assumed power, because of Slovakia's location next to the Soviet border. Sales of surplus weapons comprise a significant portion of Slovakias foreign trade in arms. Provoke or prolong armed conflicts or aggravate existing tensions or conflicts. In other areas, the law does not clearly spell out licensing procedures, and these ambiguities suggest the possible existence of additional loopholes that unscrupulous arms dealers might seek to exploit. 0000011789 00000 n Weaknesses in the legislation should be corrected through further legal changes, in particular: The definition of brokering activity should be clarified and, if necessary, expanded. Britons involved in arms running, Guardian. 142 0 obj <>stream In 1999, for example, some 400 tons of weapons were flown from Bratislavas airport, purportedly for delivery to Uganda, but the cargo allegedly was delivered instead to Sierra Leone rebels.222 Moreover, Human Rights Watch has reported on the diversion of weapons from Uganda to rebel forces in Sudan.223 As noted elsewhere in this report, under the E.U. Impose appropriate sanctions, including suspension or revocation of arms trade licenses, on companies that breach rules governing the activities of arms traders. The aerospace and defense (A&D) market in Slovakia has had difficulty developing a strong customer base since the dissolution of their biggest customer, the former Soviet Union. Human Rights Watch interview with Stanislav Jahodka, LOT, Trencin, April 18, 2002. 329 Human Rights Watch interview with Peter Kormuth and Igor Kucer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bratislava, April 12, 2002; Human Rights Watch interview with Ivan Korcok, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bratislava, October 14, 2002. For example, the language describing license requirements leaves unclear whether licenses are required when the weapons are to be leased rather than permanently exported.

Slovak officials, faced with criticism for taking only a half-measure and leaving the transit loophole in place, have argued that the countrys customs and civil aviation controls on weapons transit are sufficient to prevent illicit arms trafficking, and that transit licenses are not used in other countries in the region.278 It is true that some countries fail to adequately control weapons transit, and therefore make themselves that much more vulnerable to illicit arms trafficking, but other countries, including Poland and Bulgaria, require that weapons transshipment be licensed. This step would also contribute to the development of research and development of advanced technologies in Slovakia, which the current leadership of the Slovak Ministry of Defence considers important. Elaborate more clearly other exemptions, for example to emphasize that licensing requirements remain in place for any equipment that enters or leaves the countrys customs area, even if only on a temporary basis. 302 U.N. Register of Conventional Arms, 1999- 2002. See also Slovak minister has no knowledge of arms exports to embargoed countries, Radio Twist (Bratislava), October 4, 2001. To the contrary, weaknesses in supplier-country controls make it easy for them to obtain weapons for illegal destinations. Under these agreements, Slovakia has agreed to bar arms exports under certain circumstances, including if the weapons are destined to human rights abusers, areas of violent conflict or regional instability, countries experiencing internal armed conflict or tensions, or recipients who may divert the weapons to unauthorized users. d2\ba\d,qa474wU>Da(M@#-1'Y_X_V#wKE R&m x`_'OL}`n-Q. Such controls are increasingly being seen, including within the European Union, as a required international standard to ensure reliable arms trade control.279 This is particularly true for countries that geographic location and other factors have made regional arms transport hubs. As pointed out by a licensing official, there would be no reason for any transit across Slovakia to take more than seven days, so this exemption effectively covers all weapons transit.253 In fact, he confirmed, no license is issued for weapons transit in Slovakia.254 Another official agreed that the reference to a seven-day time period was irrelevant and described it as a drafting error in the original legislation that remained uncorrected.255, This loophole takes on added significance when one considers that Slovakia, and the airport in Bratislava in particular, has been a hub for arms shipments. The legal reforms package adopted in July 2002 strengthen end-user controls. We do not know anything about the alleged transport. Hermes denies supplying weapons to Sudan,TASR, October 24, 2001. The government later developed and formalized consultation procedures and established advisory bodies on licensing, but these procedures are not reflected in the arms trade law itself and the advisory bodies do not have statutory authority. The Ministry of Economy hosts both advisory bodies, which also include representatives of the Ministries of Defense, Foreign Affairs, and Interior, as well as the Slovak Information Service and Customs Directorate, which are not cited in the law as having an advisory role on licensing. See also, for example, Chalmovsky, Realny obraz obchoodu so zbranami, (Real image of arms trade), letter to the editor, SME. 229 Tom Nicholson, Arms traders face new hurdle to doing business, Slovak Spectator, May 13-19, 2002. The government must also overcome obstacles to carrying out solid criminal investigations. Code of Conduct lists eight criteria and elaborates further that arms exports should not be approved if the transfer in question would: Violate U.N., E.U., or OSCE embargoes or other international obligations, including arms control treaties. The U.N. register, which is published annually, covers only seven categories of heavy weapons and excludes small arms. Present a risk that the equipment being transferred would be diverted within the buyer country or re-exported under undesirable conditions. Prepare and make public a detailed annual report on arms transfers. In the aftermath of the revolution, the decision of the Federal government to end the export of arms had the most profound economic impact on the Slovak Republic, since most of the country's twenty-eight weapons plants were in eastern Slovakia, and by 1992 unemployment in the region as a result of the defense downturn was at 15%, double the rate of the rest of the country. Correct discrepancies in the licensing criteria for arms trading companies, as compared to those applied to arms brokers. In December 2001, for example, the then head of the Slovak Information Service noted that international partners had told him repeatedly that the countrys weapons control regime was considered unreliable.187 A second official, the head of the National Security Office, agreed and emphasized the importance of this issue after the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States.