IDET
24.-26.5. 2023

The official trade fairs opening was held with participation of Ministers of Defence of the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Macedonia and other VIP guests both from the Czech Republic and from abroad. The introductory speeches repeatedly emphasized the significance of investing into high-quality technologies, mainly in the contemporary security situation that has not been improving.

The International Defence and Security Technologies Fair was opened with a traditional ceremony performed by the Honorary unit of the Armed Forces of the Czech Republic (ACR) and flypasts of three military aircraft above the space of the Brno Exhibition Centre; participants of the opening, including rare uniform-wearing guests from European and other countries, witnessed a flypast of a twin-turboprop tactical military transport aircraft CASA C-295M, then of a large helicopter gunship and attack helicopter Mi-24 designed to improve mobility of land forces and to provide them with fire cover on the battlefield, and then of a medium twin-turbine versatile transport helicopter Mi-17.

Jiří Kuliš, CEO of Trade Fairs Brno, welcomed everybody and stated that there are 450 companies at the fairs, ready to offer new security technologies for the needs of the military and security forces of the Integrated Rescue System. According to Kuliš, the fairs do a great job for the Czech and Slovak defence industry as they create a pro-export platform and at the same time also become a transparent place where representatives of the industry, the military, the Ministry and national security forces can meet in person. “This year’s security fairs are held at the time when the world is facing various security challenges and risks. It makes us all the more aware that our safety and security is not to be taken for granted and that it is necessary to invest into them,” Kuliš emphasized.

Martin Stropnický, the Minister of Defence of the Czech Republic, gave an opening speech in which he mentioned increasing security risks and the necessity to focus on quantity and origin as well as on quality and price when selecting equipment. “Naturally, ACR cannot fulfil all their requirements from domestic resources. However, if the Czech industry comes with an attractive solution to our needs, it will be our preferred supplier. And that is what I would like to find out here at IDET. And I would like to emphasize again that if we select a foreign partner, participation of the Czech industry is always our prerequisite,” the Minister declared. He also reminded that the trade fair will see an expert round table session of the European Defence Agency with participation of all member countries; they will discuss specifics and needs of the defence industry in our region. “To me, it is great honour for the Ministry of Defence, for Brno and for IDET as well to host an event like this. By doing it, we show that the Ministry of Defence has been highly active in recent periods in European-level discussions in the matters of industrial cooperation,” Stropnický said.

After Stropnický’s speech, Jiří Baloun, the First Deputy Chief of the General Staff of ACR, took the stage and reviewed the extensive reformatory changes that ACR have undergone in the last 20 years. He stated that in his eyes, the IDET fair is a suitable opportunity to introduce both the expert and general public into ACR activities in an appropriate way, to present their abilities and future goals, technologies, defence systems or systems of command and training. He also mentioned the motto of the military exhibition “Together, we can do it – we are a team!” which symbolizes the ability of interoperability that is essential in fulfilling tasks in deployment in foreign operations as well as in the domestic environment within the Integrated Rescue System. “However, the IDET fair is not only about abilities of ACR. It represents space to form further cooperation between ACR and the Association of Defence and Security Industry and presents trends and innovations in this field,” Jiří Baloun stated.

Tomáš Tuhý, the Chief of Police, emphasized that the Police of the Czech Republic presents a wide range of innovations and wants to discuss contemporary topics. “I guess we all perceive the situation the world is in today. There are issues of fighting against terrorism, against cybercrime, illegal migration – these are problems we read about every day. Thanks to long-term non-systemic savings, the Police came to a situation where we were forced to accept fundamental measures for modernization and increase of our contemporary numbers. And the very opportunities such as the trade fair opening today develop options for discussion of contemporary security topics, stated the Chief of Police.

General Director of the Fire and Rescue Service of the Czech Republic (HZS ČR) Drahoslav Ryba also gave a speech, stating that trade fairs IDET, PYROS and ISET are very significant trade fair events on the European level in their field, which is proved by hundreds of exhibitors from more than twenty countries. “I am convinced that the trade fairs have their undisputable place even in these modern times. Not all innovations can be presented on paper or on a computer monitor and the best business is still sealed with a handshake,” Drahoslav Ryba emphasized and invited everyone to the HZS ČR stand in Hall F to see demonstrations of the state-of-the-art fire and rescue technology.

Distinguished guests of the official trade fairs opening also included the Slovak Minister of Defence Martin Glváč, Macedonian Minister of Defence Zoran Jolevski, the Chairperson of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Security František Bublan, the Chairman of the Committee for PSP Defence David Kádner, Deputy Director of the European Defence Agency Rini Goos, President of the Association of Defence and Security Industry Jiří Hynek and others.