The EU ATHENA Special Committee held its informal meeting in Hungary on 4-6 May, 2011. The EU ATHENA Special Committee is a financial working body dealing with financial questions of the EU’s military crisis management missions.

The EU ATHENA Special Committee was created by the Council of the European Union in order to manage the common costs of EU military crisis management operations. The ATHENA Special Committee works in an exceptional manner in the field of the Common Security and Defence Policy. It is chaired by the rotating Presidency even after the Lisbon Treaty entered into force. Thus Col. Péter Fodor, Head of the Controlling and Financing Department of the Hungarian ministry of defence chairs the working group in this semester.

Members of the EU ATHENA Special Committee were welcomed by Mr. Gábor MÁRKI, Deputy State Secretary for Defence Economy. In the framework of its informal visit the working group visited Pápa Airbase and the Heavy Airlift Wing’s Boeing C-17 Globemasters.  The Special Committee also held an informal meeting at Stefánia Palace on May 6.

(kormány.hu; HM Védelempolitikai Főosztály)