Defense Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky held talks with his Italian counterpart, Guido Crosetto, in Pápa, in western Hungary, on Friday.
According to MTI, the two ministers discussed military cooperation, their countries’ participation in NATO’s battle group based in Hungary as well as their experiences in commanding the KFOR peacekeeping mission in Kosovo. Speaking about Crosetto’s visit, Szalay-Bobrovniczky said the strengthening of NATO’s eastern flank and the establishment of four more battle groups had been one of the alliance’s most important decisions following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. The battle group set up in Hungary with a Hungarian leadership had achieved operational readiness by late September, he said. Szalay-Bobrovniczky said Crosetto had visited the Italian forces that make up the second-largest contingent within the battle group.