Prague, Sept 17 (CTK) – The Czech military has prepared a list of equipment it may use for the protection of the national border if need be, as indicated by Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (Social Democrats, CSSD) on Tuesday, daily Lidove noviny (LN) writes yesterday.
The military is about to use a number of the Iveco light armoured personnel carriers that passed through the Afghan mission and night vision tools, LN writes.
In addition, it wants to employ some heavy equipment from the artillery force, it adds.
This may be the reconnaissance and observation system Snezka, weighing 17 tonnes, LN writes.
Mounted on the chassis of an infantry fighting vehicle, Snezka serves to track down targets and to observe artillery shell impact.
The same tasks are fulfilled by the somewhat lighter LOS (Light Observation System). The military is also ready to send the system to monitor the national border, LN writes.
“According to the latest information, this will be primarily the Czech-Austrian border area,” a Defence Ministry official is quoted as saying.
If the military really received the task from the government, along with the police, it would have to guard roughly 470 kilometres of the border, LN writes.
Depending on the concrete demands, the police and military will only decide how many of their members they will assign to the task, it adds.
Defence Minister Martin Stropnicky (ANO) said earlier this year the military would offer maximally 2,600 troops, LN writes.
However, this may considerably reduce the planned training and international tasks, it adds.
“We are ready to set aside up to 1,500 soldiers without any major impact on the fulfilment of routine tasks,” Stropnicky is quoted as saying.
If called up, the troops would form mixed patrols along with the police, LN writes.
The assistance of the military police would also be needed before an action, it adds.
The body has several Crowd Riot Control (CRC) instructors. Soldiers who were about to leave for foreign missions underwent the CRC training.
In 2013, a part of the anti-aircraft brigade in Strakonice, south Bohemia, was trained for the purpose.
It is very likely that if there is a relevant government decision, the police will ask the military for help. Then, the general staff will primarily send the troops with the experience from foreign missions and the units with the CRC skills, LN writes.
However, the military does not have much available staff to select from for immediate deployment. As a result, if the units are called up, members of active reserves might be added to them, it adds.
In the current migration crisis in the EU, the Czech Republic has rejected the mandatory refugee redistribution quotas the European Commission has proposed.
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