German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Slovak head of state Zuzana Caputova on Wednesday evening visited about 400 German and Dutch soldiers stationed at the Sliac air base as part of NATO’s forward presence. Sliac in Central Slovakia is also where the Patriot ground-to-air missile defence has been installed since March. Caputova thanked Slovakia’s allies from Germany, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic, who helped to bolster the country’s security. Defence Minister Jaroslav Nad reported that three batteries of the Patriot system are currently in operation at the Sliac air base. The NATO soldiers are living both at the base, which is undergoing reconstruction, and in a tent camp. The base also houses Russian personnel servicing the remaining MiG-29 aircraft.
Source: TASR
