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Italy will be the partner nation of NATO Days, Minister Černochová announced

Italy will take on the role of the Special Partner Nation of the jubilee 25th NATO Days in Ostrava & 16th Czech Air Force Days. This was announced by the Minister of Defense of the Czech Republic, Jana Černochová, with her Italian counterpart, Guido Crosetto, at a joint meeting on the occasion of the North Atlantic Alliance summit in The Hague.

The unique concept of a Special Partner Nation (SPN) allows for an expanded presentation of the given state and its security cooperation with the Czech Republic. This year, visitors to the event can look forward to a unique presentation of the Italian armed and security forces or the local defense industry.

"It was an honor to address my Italian colleague Guido Crosetto on this matter and I am very pleased that he accepted the proposal and that, within the framework of the NATO Summit, we, together with him and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Jan Lipavský, confirmed the cooperation of our countries at this prestigious and successful event," said Minister of Defense Jana Černochová. "I believe that the Italian participation will bring visitors to this year's NATO Days an attractive spectacle. Thanks to the Italian Air Force, the F-35 aircraft was presented in Ostrava for the first time in 2021. Italy is our important ally, we are bound by traditions associated with the legacy of the legionnaires, and we are now closely cooperating on the supply of F-35 aircraft to the Czech Army,"

"For us as organizers, but also for everyone involved in this event, it is an honor that the NATO Days in Ostrava & the Czech Air Force Days are the subject of international negotiations at the highest level - whether now or in 2023, when Poland was jointly announced as a SPN by Presidents Petr Pavel and Andrzej Duda," says Zbyněk Pavlačík, Chairman of Jagello 2000, the main organizer of the event. "I would like to thank Minister Černochová for this announcement at such an important event as the NATO summit. We greatly appreciate Minister Crosetto's positive response and thank our Italian partners for deciding to accept this role. This is a testament to the excellent level of bilateral relations that our countries have, not only in the field of security."

The Italian armed forces first appeared at Mošnov Airport in 2007 and have been returning regularly since then. The largest participation to date was in 2016, when the Frecce Tricolori aerobatic group performed at NATO Days, which also won the award for the best flight display. And it was the Italian Air Force that started the series of demonstrations of the 5^th generation F-35 aircraft when it sent it for a static display in 2021. A year later, a machine in Dutch colors was presented in a fly past, and in 2023 we could see a full-fledged flight performance of the American F-35A, as well as a demonstration of the capabilities of the British F-35B aircraft.

"We expect that this year, for the first time, Italy will present other armed services besides the air force, but we will only publish details in the coming weeks," Pavlačík further reveals. "We also hope that this year's NATO Days will help further develop cooperation between Italian and Czech companies and armed forces."

The SPN concept was introduced at NATO Days in 2014 and has since been adopted by Poland, Germany, Sweden, Romania, the USA and Slovakia. In addition to the air force, these also demonstrated ground forces, special or rescue units. SPN is also reflected in the greater participation of important guests from the country, whether politicians, senior representatives of the participating units, security experts or representatives of private companies. NATO Days also serve as a platform for establishing contacts, whether at the state or commercial level.

See you at
NATO Days in Ostrava & Czech Air Force Days 2025!