More Hungarian soldiers in Kosovo and Bosnia

BELGRADE - Chief of the General Staff of the Hungarian Armed Forces General Tibor Benko stated on Tuesday that the number of Hungarian soldiers in Kosovo-Metohija (KiM) and Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) would increase as the forces withdraw from Afghanistan.

We need to set up strong and firm cooperation in the Balkan region because it bears major importance for both sides (Serbia and Hungary), which is why the decision has been adopted that the number of troops in Kosovo and BiH should increase simultaneously with the withdrawal of soldiers from Afghanistan, Benko said after the meeting with Chief-of-staff of the Serbian Armed Forces General Ljubisa Dikovic in Belgrade.

He noted that the two countries' armies had an exceptionally good cooperation in joint exercises and multinational peacekeeping operations since he assumed office as the head of the Hungarian army headquarters.

During my last visit to Cyprus, I had a chance to see the actions of exceptionally well-trained and committed soldiers of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Serbia, Benko said.

He announced the possibility of cooperation in the area of military medicine. The seat of a NATO military medical centre is based in Hungary, Benko recalled and expressed the belief that good cooperation can be achieved in this area.

He recalled that Hungary has been a member of the EU since 2004 and added that the experience of the Hungarian soldiers can prove useful for the Serbian army as well and help facilitate its EU accession process.

Chief-of-staff of the Serbian Armed Forces General Ljubisa Dikovic stated that the two countries share exceptionally good bilateral military cooperation.

For a number of years now, our soldiers have been...