Simicic attends the Conference of Chiefs of Staff in Macedonia
Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Admiral Zdenko Simicic, participated as a guest on the fifth consecutive Conference of Chiefs of General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Balkan countries, which was held from 7 to 9 June 2011 in Ohrid, Macedonia.
The Conference, which was opened by the President of the Republic of Macedonia Gjorge Ivanov, was attended by Chiefs of Staff of Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Montenegro and Serbia, Deputy Chief of General Staff of Greece and Romania and the Commander of the Third Army of the Turkish Armed Forces. Also, the Deputy Chairman of NATO Military Committee, Lieutenant General Walter E. Gaskin, Commander of the Joint Force Command from Naples, Admiral Samuel Locklear, and Deputy Chief of Staff of the Slovenian Armed Forces Admiral Renato Petric also participated on the conference as guests.
The discussion on the conference was on strengthening cooperation in the field of training and exercises, strengthening mutual relations as well as the continuation of the common response to contemporary security challenges.
On the sidelines of the conference, Rear Admiral Zdenko Simicic held several bilateral meetings. Thus, at a meeting with a delegation of Montenegro Armed Forces it were confirmed good neighbourly relations and a successful bilateral military cooperation, a major topic of the meeting between Admiral Simicic and Admiral Samardzic was forthcoming joint engagement of the Croatian and Montenegrin armed forces in the ISAF mission in Afghanistan.
At a meeting with the Chief of GS of Macedonian Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Miroslav Stojanovski, they discussed the improvement of bilateral military cooperation, participation in multinational operations led by NATO, with an emphasis on the forthcoming collaboration within the School of Military Police in Afghanistan, and they also exchanged experiences on the reform of the armed forces.
At a meeting with the Commander of Joint Force Command from Naples Admiral Samuel Locklear, Admiral Simicic talked about participation in peacekeeping missions and operations, and in this context, Admiral particularly emphasized the CAF participation in the ISAF operation in Afghanistan as well as a joint contribution of Member States of A5 to the School of Military Police of the Afghan national army under Croatian leadership. One of the topics discussed were related to Operation “Unified Protector” and on sending two CAF officers in the Centre for air operations in the Italian Poggio Renatico.