Jaroslav Naď

Jaroslav Naď (born 21 March 1981 in Nitra, Czechoslovakia) is a Slovak politician who served as Minister of Defence between March 2020 and May 2023, as a nominee of OĽaNO.[1] He specialises in national security issues.[2] He previously worked with Globsec.[3] Currently he serves as a deputy chairman of the Democrats.[4]

Jaroslav Naď
Minister of Defence
In office
21 March 2020 – 15 May 2023
Prime MinisterIgor Matovič
Eduard Heger
Preceded byPeter Gajdoš
Succeeded byMartin Sklenár
Personal details
Born (1981-03-21) 21 March 1981
Nitra, Czechoslovakia
(now Slovakia)
Political partyDemocrats (2023–present)
Previous: OĽaNO (2018–2023)
SMER-SD (2000–2001)
SpouseKatarína Beláková (divorced)
Children3
EducationArmed Forces Academy
Matej Bel University

Early life

Naď graduated in Political Science at the Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica in 2007 and received further training at the European Security and Defence College in Brussels. Between 2004 and 2011, he worked in various roles at the Slovak Ministry of Defense. Later, Naď was active as a diplomat at the NATO headquarters and with Slovak security think tanks GLOBSEC and the Slovak Security Institute. In 2018, he obtained his PhD from the Armed Forces Academy of General Milan Rastislav Štefánik.[5]

Political career
Naď at a press conference with the US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in March 2022 in Bratislava.

In 2000, he joined the Slovak Social Democracy party.[6] In 2023, Robert Fico had claimed that Naď had requested a regional political position from Fico and partisan leadership. Following the denial, Fico alleged that Naď had departed from the party.[7]

In 2018, he became a member of Ordinary People and Independent Personalities (OĽANO) running for the party in the 2020 Slovak parliamentary election. After the electoral victory of OĽANO, Naď became the Minister of Defence.[1] Beginning with March 2023, he serves as a deputy chairman of the Democrats party.[4]

Personal life

Naď is divorced with three children: two from his previous marriage with Katarína Baláková, and one from his partner, journalist Barbara Túrosová.[8]

Controversy

Naď was linked with accusations of nepotism, when his partner Barbora Túrosová was assigned as the spokeswoman of the Ministry of Interior. She denied the allegations, referring to her long-term journalism career in TA3. Naď was previously linked with nepotism back in 2014, when his brother René was appointed as the Permanent Representation of the Slovak Republic to NATO in Brussels, while Naď was one of the officers at the Ministry of Defence. No verdicts were declared in either of the cases.[9]

References
  1. "Nie Grendel, ministrom vnútra bude Mikulec. Matovič predstavil svoju vládu". slovensko.hnonline.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  2. "Slovakia Signs €1.6-bn Deal on Purchase of 14 New F-16 Fighter Jets". TASR. 12 December 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  3. "Jaroslav Naď". Ministerstvo obrany SR. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  4. tasr (2023-03-07). "Eduard Heger oznámil vznik novej strany s názvom Demokrati". .týždeň - iný pohľad na spoločnosť (in Slovak). Retrieved 2023-06-08.
  5. "Jaroslav Naď - minister obrany". SME (in Slovak). Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  6. Šnídl, Vladimír (27 November 2018). "Analytik Naď ide k Matovičovi: S Hrnkom sme mali dohodu o neútočení, on ju porušil". Denník N (in Slovak). Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  7. "Robert Fico: Idem do kampane, v ktorej ma chcú zatvoriť". Štandard (in Slovak). Retrieved 2023-03-20.
  8. Kosečeková, Rebeka. "Novou hovorkyňou ministra vnútra sa stala priateľka ministra obrany. Tu je jej reakcia" (in Slovak). tvnoviny.sk.
  9. "Novou hovorkyňou rezortu vnútra bude priateľka ministra obrany Jaroslava Naďa. Rodinkárstvo odmieta". Denník S. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
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