Registration is open as European special operations stakeholders prepare to convene at a
symposium in Bratislava, in the Slovak Republic, on 1-3 October 2024 to focus on security challenges and irregular warfare solutions.
Now in its eighth edition, the Global Special Operations Forces (GSOF) Symposium Europe, which this year is being held at the Grand Hotel River Park in Bratislava, is an annual conference and exhibition which brings together the special operations forces (SOF) of more than 35 nations as well as other key SOF stakeholders to do business, network and explore the most recent industry developments.
“The Slovak Republic, as a member of NATO for 20 years, is honoured to host one of the most important SOF-related events and significantly contribute with our partners to a safe and secure global environment,” said General Daniel Zmeko, Chief of Defence of the Slovak Republic.
“The latest developments on NATO’s eastern Flank further support the necessary and continual modernisation of armed forces, including vital special operations forces. The Global SOF Symposium will provide an opportunity to discuss among NATO members current security challenges for better adaptation to the evolving security environment and to strengthen our defence capabilities,” Gen Zmeko added.
Featuring several world-leading speakers from the special operations sector, the 2024 Symposium will also have a selection of more than 40 industry exhibitors. Participating industry partners will share their latest products and services to support SOF across Europe and beyond.
“The Slovak Republic is in the middle of transforming their military from Soviet-era Russian-made equipment to modern, NATO-compatible capabilities,” said Stu Bradin, President & CEO of theGlobal SOF Foundation. “They are looking for major items like aircraft, tanks, weapon systems and communications equipment, and GSOF Symposium Europe 2024 is a unique opportunity for our community to help them fulfill those capability requirements.”
More than 400 symposium attendees will be able to:
■ Showcase evolving product and service solutions for special operations forces;
■ Monitor competitor and collaborator activities related to the special operations sector;
■ Evaluate emerging trends and technologies relevant to special operations;
■ Network with new and existing connections in the global special operations community;
■ Discover new technology and shape future special operations capabilities and partnerships.
“The Slovak Special Operation Forces are honoured to host the Global SOF Symposium Europe on the occasion of the Slovak Armed Forces’ fifth anniversary of the establishment of our Special Operation Command,” said Major General Jaroslav Krám, Slovakia’s SOF Commander.
“During this event, the networking, information sharing, lessons learned implementation, and experiences exchange that will take place among the SOF community leads to fortifying SOF partnerships in order to fulfill essential tasks facing the community. We believe you will enjoy your stay in our capital city of Bratislava during the Global SOF Symposium Europe,” said Gen Krám.
Each year the GSOF Symposium Europe event moves to a new European venue. Past locations include: Brno, Czech Republic (2023); Budapest, Hungary (2022); Warsaw, Poland (2021); Brussels, Belgium (2019); Madrid, Spain (2018); Bucharest, Romania (2017); Vilnius, Lithuania (2016).
Media registration is open for actively contributing journalists for national, international, or industry media outlets and publications. The media point of contact is jsalata@globalsoffoundation.org.
GSOF is a non-profit organisation which aims to grow and develop an international network of military, government, commercial and education stakeholders in order to advance SOF capabilities and partnerships to confront global and networked threats. The Foundation has partnered with Clarion Events’ Defence & Security division to co-ordinate the delivery of this event. This collaboration maximises the opportunity to provide a world-class event focused specifically on the SOF community.
For more information visit https://www.gsofeurope.org/
