Defence Minister Sklenár: The pullout of Soviet troops from Czechoslovakia brought an end to occupation and an opportunity to freely go our own way of life in democracy

During a ceremony in the town of Sliač, Defence Minister Martin Sklenár commemorated the 32nd anniversary of the pullout of the Soviet occupation forces from Czechoslovakia. The last of over 900 transports left Czechoslovakia on 21 June 1991.

Speaking at the commemoration ceremony in Sliač, Defence Minister Martin Sklenár stressed: “The withdrawal of Soviet troops from Czechoslovakia was the culmination of the events of the Gentle Revolution – confirming definitively that Czechs and Slovaks now had an opportunity to freely go their own way of life in democracy. The courage of the people and the impact of their actions during November 1989 can only be fully grasped when we look at the numbers representing the sheer strength of the oppression imposed by the Soviet forces here for almost 23 years – 73,500 Soviet officers and soldiers, almost 40,000 family members, 1,220 main battle tanks, 2,500 infantry fighting vehicles, more than 100 aircraft, almost 200 helicopters, and 95,000 tonnes of ammunition. While the Gentle Revolution was taking place under the eye of this huge army, there were high tensions over whether or not it would take action against the gathered crowds of citizens.”

In addition to the loss of sovereignty, restriction of rights and freedoms, and ecological damage, Martin Sklenár reminded that the Soviet occupation caused the loss of the most valuable – human lives. Due to the presence of foreign troops, a total of 108 died in Czechoslovakia, of whom 38 died in Slovakia, in the period between 21 August and 31 December 1968.

The commemoration of today's anniversary culminated with a ‘Twenty-Year Occupation Temporariness’ panel discussion in Banská Bystrica, with participation from Defence Minister Martin Sklenár, Interior Minister Ivan Šimko, former Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Supervision of Soviet Troops' Withdrawal Michael Kocáb, former Head of the Authority Overseeing Soviet Troops' Withdrawal Maj Gen Svetozár Naďovič, and Chair of the Management Board of the Nation's Memory Institute Jerguš Sivoš.

The Warsaw Pact forces' invasion of Czechoslovakia began on the night of 20-21 August 1968 and the occupation of Czechoslovak territory lasted well until 1991. The pullout of the Soviet troops took 16 months to complete, in phased stages from March 1990 to 21 June 1991.