Speech of the Prime Minister of the CR Mirek Topolánek on the occasion of a festive ceremony at the Vítkov Monument on 1st March 2007

I feel honoured to address this assemblage on the memorable Vítkov Hill. I feel honoured to appreciate the work of the Chief of the General Staff who successfully fulfilled his tasks. And I feel honoured to wish the same success to his successor.

First of all I must thank you, army general, for achieving professionalization of the Czech Army under your leadership, for achieving operational abilities and for the fact that the army is among the best armies, which accessed to NATO in 1990´.

They have written for me here that you are a team player, that you have recruited young people and that you have improved prestige of the army in the eyes of the public. But they did not have to write it for me, I know that. Slow and steady work wins the race, as people say.

I know that your post was not easy. You had to manage wide-ranging army reform in the time of budget reduction. And it is undoubtedly also your merit that even in this situation all things are operating well and that our soldiers fulfil excellently their tasks in missions in abroad.

I thank you - a soldier who devoted his entire life to army. I thank you - a general who always fulfilled his tasks and inspired his subordinates. And I wish you - a man whom I know as very reliable man, a lot of successes in your further work. If I appreciated the work of outgoing Chief of the General Staff, then I believe that you, major general, will win your spurs as well.

I have heard, in fact, that you have already won some, when you tackled ascent on the mountain of Sněžka and the march from Prague to Prčice together with the President. Such things are valued in case of the chief commander of armed forces.

I know not only about your physical abilities, of course, but in particular about your managerial skills, which you have proved by fulfilment of a task that concerned ensuring compatibility of command and management in the framework of NATO and in the course of professionalization of the Castle Guard.

You will need your managerial and communication skills in the new position in particular when you are persuading the Minister of Finance to increase the army budget. You will need your skills for the next phase of the armed forces reform and last but not least during negotiations on the anti-missile defence. I wish you, general, to be successful in the new function of yours. I can frankly promise you two things on my behalf. First, my support of justified and realistic requirements of the army. And second: blood, drudgery, tears and sweat.