On July 10, 2025, the University of Defence was honored by the visit of the Deputy Minister for Science, Research, and Innovation, Mgr. Jana Havlíková. The purpose of the meeting was to familiarize the Deputy Minister with the research and innovation potential of the University, its key projects, and the challenges it faces in their implementation.

The Deputy Minister was welcomed by the Rector-Commandant of the University of Defence, Brigadier General Jan Farlík, who, in his opening remarks, emphasized the importance of research and development activities carried out by the University’s teams to meet the needs of the Armed Forces of the Czech Republic and to support international defence cooperation.

The meeting was also attended by Vice-Rector for Strategy and Development, Lieutenant Colonel Zdeněk Pokorný; Vice-Rector for External Relations and Internationalization, Colonel (General Staff) Petr Hlavizna; Vice-Rector for Scientific and Expert Activities, Professor Vanda Boštíková; Dean of the Faculty of Military Leadership, Colonel (General Staff) Jan Drozd; and Vice-Dean for Research at the Faculty of Military Technologies, Lieutenant Colonel Jiří Štoller.

Key topics discussed during the meeting included the involvement of academic staff from the University of Defence in both national and international research projects. Particular attention was paid to the limitations in accessing certain grant schemes due to the specific nature of defence-related research. Representatives of the University of Defence also highlighted the need to establish flexible support instruments that would enable more active and equitable participation of military researchers and educators in research and development activities.

Deputy Minister Havlíková expressed her understanding of the specific conditions of defence research and pledged to seek systemic solutions that would provide targeted financial and institutional support to military personnel engaged in academic work.

At the conclusion of her visit, the Deputy Minister toured selected research and technological facilities at the University of Defence, where she was introduced to specific projects in the areas of military technologies, defence systems, and security research, all of which demonstrated a high potential for practical application.

Photo: Lucie Sedláková Author: Lucie Sedláková