English annotation

 The Time of Decisions and Deeds Has Come by Col. Ing. Zdeněk Brousil. By sending a letter of intent and signing the Document of Accession to NATO in December last year, we express our firm resolution to join this political and defence alliance. It is a great success of our foreign policy which started by our sign under the Partnership for Peace framework document. The negotiations lasted many years. Now it depends only on NATO membership states whether they support Alliance enlargement by three new nations. We believe they do and our membership will come true and we become a full member in 1999. But by then, we have a lot to do.

Consequences of Madrid Summit and Military Sector by Ing. Josef Janošec, CSc. We fully accept the decision of political leaders of the CR to access to the Alliance. Such decision is in harmony with general trends of international security. In fact, up to now, we have lived under the "protective umbrella of NATO". The situation is changing now. After NATO July summit in Madrid, political and military activities reached the highest point. A number of ideas, all-round analyses and respective measures have been adopted. Special attention is paid to some important aspects (interoperability, standardization, logistics, arms unification etc.) that can°t be missed during our preparation to join NATO.

The Security System of the CR and Crisis Management by Maj. Ing. Lubomír Spáčil, CSc. The security structure of the Czech Republic can be defined as a system of state and military bodies, together with a number of security corps, disaster relieve and emergency teams, and so on. All those institutions are under control of the so-called crisis management, which consists of wide range of organs, local authorities, mutual relations, provisions used for managing special activities during emergencies. It is a task of both the armed forces and all society. But there is one thing missing, underlines the author. We miss the leading organ which could co-ordinate bodies of state establishment, municipal organs and activities of teams appointed to solve crisis situations.

Alternative Probability of Lowering Threats by Col. Ing. František Valach, CSc. New security challenges have gradually gained global dimensions. We therefore are looking for new approach to security matters. But present-day arms control does not correspond with this changing security surroundings. The article sets out respective examples of arms reduction at strategical level, and those of non-proliferation of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons (NBC). It is the very chance for further negotiations about arms reduction, for introducing more effective counter proliferation of NBC, arms and combat materiel, last but not least threats reduction.

Leader Development in the Forces of NATO Nations and the Army of the CR by Prof. Ing. Jaroslav Komárek, CSc. The transformation of the Army of the Czech Republic was accompanied from the very beginning by the effort to transform military school system, training and education of army officers. Generally we can divide military school system into two levels: officer candidate schools and staff schools. The author compares our school system with that in NATO countries, where the main stress is laid on leadership, team spirit, and explains several differences between systems in Great Britain, Germany and France. The thing is important, because we must be compatible even in this field with NATO nations, as it is also a part of our overall transformation.

MILITARY ART

Various Ways of the Deployment of the Army of the Czech Republic by Col. GSO. Ing. Milan Kubeša, CSc. In our military revue "Vojenské rozhledy" 2/97 there were two important materials having direct influence on questions connected with state and citizens security in a broad sense of word: National Defence Strategy and the Outline of Czech Army Conception till the Year 2000. Backed by those two documents, the author examines various forms of ACR deployment in crisis situations and concentrates mainly on the closure of state borders and explains the notion "defence operation of the ACR". His lessons are supplemented by several schemes of probable ACR deployment in defence operations.

The Importance of Fortifications and Habitations for the Republic Defence by Prof. Ing. Karel Novotný, CSc. The purpose of this paper is to draw our attention to the defence potentialities of buildings and local settlements. There is necessity to theoretically work out this theme, of course, in cooperation with military commanders and staffs at all levels. In accord with the concept of operational development of Czech territory, we must carry out the necessary measures. As regards partial issue dealing with towns/buildings defence, it is author°s contribution to solving problems concerning both state defence and regions.

OPINIONS, CONTROVERSY

Considerations over Core Notions of State Security by Lt. Col. GSO. Ing. Richard Janderka, CSc., and Col. Ing. Karel Janíček, CSc. The wide scope of problems dealing with state security calls for not only practical solutions of individual questions in everyday life, but also systematic scientific examination. In the last few years, within the Czech army, we worked up several instruments and theoretical bases which must be further adjusted, revised and made more precise. In their article, the authors introduce several ideas that could help with for subsequent development, knowing that their ideas may or may not be accepted by individual teams in question.

 The Philosophy of Defence by Dr. Ing. Karel Kozák. The author in his article introduced one of many viewpoints on the defence of the Czech Republic. What does he mean under the label "defence philosophy"? It a complex of all theories and knowledge concerning "strategy defence", or as it is used now "national defence strategy". But in this field there is far more improvisation than real conceptual work. So, it is necessary to work out new study on defence. Such study ought to be worked up by some scholarly institution, e.g. the Institute for Strategical Study or Institute for Defence Studies, as we had in the past.

Extending Stability of Exposed Systems by Doc. Ing. Karel Peltán, CSc. The purpose of all our strength in this field is to prolong and extend the ability of all systems exposed to destructive and harmful factors, to preserve certain fixed level of their activities and functions, to restore in short-term period necessary functionality. In practice all problems of crisis management are reflected in settling preference measures, together with rapid response to arisen difficulties and troubles. But there is a danger, according to the author, that crisis situations may reach our organizers not quite ready, therefore it is high time for them to prepare some sets of priorities.

INFORMATIZATION

Informatization of Defence Sector by Lt.Col. Ing. Jiří Šindýlek. By the term of "informatization" the author labels the utilization of informational technologies in command and control process, covering development, implementation, operation and maintenance of communication and information system in the Czech MoD and actually both in defence sector, as well as in C4I systems. It is not a single, isolated process which only makes command and control more complicate. Informatization represents, in the first place, the development of information services and support for command and control, ensuring informational demands at all levels of defence sector. Such informational service has to create its own organizational structure and rules, so that it could work efficiently in favour of its users, because without centralized management, there is impossible to solve this basic task in a complex way.