Defense Ministry responds to Slovakia's letter

The Polish Ministry of Defense has replied to a letter issued by Slovak Defense Minister Martin Glváč, assuring that actions surrounding the NATO counterintelligence center do not affect Slovak personnel. “Deputy Defense Minister Tomasz Szatkowski, speaking on behalf of the Defense Minister, Antoni Macierewicz, reassured that no changes to Slovak personnel were made,” a statement read. Last week, Martin Glváč requested "a stop to all non-standard actions," with regard to NATO's Center of Excellence run jointly by Poland and Slovakia. The Slovakian Defense Minister reminded that the NATO facility is an independent, international institution, and not a part of Poland's MoD. "I ask you to present your vision of Poland's contribution to the development of the center. I expect your proposals no later than January 31, 2016," the letter concluded. The letter was a response to an incident that occurred at around 1 AM on December 18, when Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz, assisted by ministry officials and military police, entered the NATO counterintelligence center to oust the head of the office. Bartłomiej Misiewicz, a ministry official said then that the ousted head, Krzysztof Dusza, had failed to act on a dismissal order.  The defense ministry appointed Robert Bala as the acting director, who was also among the staff who raided the office that night.