Page 30 - The Cormorant Issue 14

RSE 1 The Czech Republic
by Lt Cdr Paul Matthews RN
As part of the series of Regional Security Exercises, 60 staff and students from ACSC 14 visited the Czech Republic at the begin- ning of February. Departing from Shrivenham at early o’clock on a dark Monday morning, we later arrived in a snow covered, freezing, Prague and were given the news that things were only going to get colder during the week. Situated in the heart of Europe, the Czech Republic has had its fair share of challenges from a historical, political, economic and military perspective and has been ruled for 360 of the last 400 years from Vienna, Berlin and Moscow. It is a fascinating example of a post-Soviet state transforming to a liberal democracy in a relatively compressed period of time.
The busy visit programme reinforced the academic analysis of both the EU and NATO that we had undertaken at Shrivenham, and there was also an opportunity to experience some of the cultural delights that Prague has to offer during organised and informal visits to the historic city. After a particularly cold guided- tour of the city on our arrival, students were let loose in the town centre of Prague to discover some of the aforementioned cultural experiences of Prague. For C7 syndicate, this entailed a meat lover’s feast at a local hostelry where several glasses of the local lager were also enjoyed.
The visit commenced in earnest the following day with a series of in-country briefs provided by Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the
Lt Cdr Jeff Bell
Prague
Czech Republic, the Director of one of Prague’s universities, and the Czech MOD Policy Director. These briefs set the scene for the remainder of the visit and provided a brief overview of some of the political and military challenges that face the country as they embark on their third decade of self-governance following the collapse of the Communist regime in the wake of the Vel- vet Revolution in 1989. The scene-setting was followed by an informative tour of the Aero Vodachody facility on the outskirts of Prague which, in its heyday, had in excess of 6000 employees producing one MiG aircraft a day on behalf of its comrades in the USSR. It was somewhat surreal to stand in a military production facility knowing that until relatively recently it made equipment designed to defeat our own military. Now employing a more modest 1200 staff, the facility relies heavily on international con- tracts and was extremely proud to show off their most modern production line that was building US Sikorsky helicopters. Din- ner at a different restaurant in Prague indicated that vegetables were going to be a premium throughout the visit, so we reverted to type and sampled more meat and beer.
A long and bumpy road to the University of Defence in Brno pro- vided us with an overview of the military education programme within the country. With all officers mandated to achieve degree level education and majors requiring compulsory education to Masters level, it was somewhat disappointing that there appears to be little in the way of education for Czech other ranks despite the abolishment of conscription in 2004. This was followed by a visit to Fortress Spielberk, also in Brno, and a battlefield tour of Austerlitz, the scene of Napoleon’s greatest victory over the Russo-Austrian army. While these visits promised to be a partic- ular highlight of the RSE, the dilapidated condition of the fortress prevented a full tour of the battlements, and the -15°C tempera- ture on the battlefield was distracting to say the least.
The last day of the RSE brought a visit to the Senate of Parlia- ment and a brief by Senator Tomas Jirsa, which provided a fas- cinating capstone to the busy schedule. This was followed by a formal discussion at the British Embassy where students were able to provide feedback on the visit to a number of economic, social and military panellists who, with one or two exceptions, appeared receptive to our general observations. A traditional cultural reception at the hotel on the final evening concluded an interesting visit, and our exposure to a broad range of Czech culture was greatly appreciated.
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