At the Theresian Military Academy in Vienna’s New Town, Austria, during the reception ceremony for new officers in the Austrian armed forces, an officer from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) refused to shake hands with the Austrian Minister of Defense, Claudia Tanner.
As the Austrian Kurier writes, the incident happened during the traditional ceremony, which is the highlight of the academy’s annual activities. The officer refused to shake Minister Tanner’s hand because she is a woman, justifying it with his religious beliefs. As a result, the soldier was immediately excluded from the rest of the ceremony and was not even presented with the traditional academy ring, which was confirmed by the Austrian Ministry of Defense.
According to the Austrian media, Deputy Minister of Defense of BiH Slaven Galic was informed in advance that the officer would not want to shake hands with the minister. That is why the soldier was not even invited to the stage. Minister Tanner expressed her dissatisfaction with this act, and Galic later apologized on behalf of BiH.
For years, Austria has been training military personnel from the countries of the Western Balkans, such as BiH and Montenegro, with the aim of strengthening stability in the region.
These countries do not have their own officer schools, and previously they trained their officers in Turkey. The European Union (EU) has supported this type of cooperation.
At the ceremony, Slaven Galic emphasized the importance of Austrian support in the construction of the Armed Forces (AFBiH) and praised the high level of training provided at the Theresian Military Academy.
Photo: Kurier
