Budapest, July 28 (MTI) – Hungarian Colonel Imre Porkolab has been appointed to NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (SACT) liaison officer in The Pentagon effective July this year.
“This is the first occasion for such a highly prestigious post to be fulfilled by a representative of a smaller country, so it is also great recognition for the Hungarian Armed Forces,” he told MTI.
The 43-year-old colonel said his task will be to coordinate the work of NATO’s Allied Command Operations (ACT) with the US Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Department of Defense. The appointment is for three years and he expects it will have a positive influence on Hungary’s assessment in NATO and US relations. He said his aim is to increase NATO’s “visibility” in The Pentagon and attract more attention to the contributions of NATO members to operations carried out jointly with the US. The ACT liaison office is the only one in The Pentagon that represents NATO, he added.
Porkolab said Hungarian research capacities need to be better utilised and there are opportunities for Hungarian organisations to get involved in international research projects. He has already contacted representatives of the Hungarian Atlantic Council and the National University of Public Service’s Institute of National Security to identify areas of common interest, he added.