“I’m proud to be the first women to lead the Slovak contingent in Cyprus as part of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus,” says Lieutenant Colonel Katarína Gargalíková. Born in Prešov, Slovakia in 1979, she joined the Slovak Armed Forces in 2003 and has served in Cyprus since September 2023, she is on her first ever UN Mission serving as a Commanding Officer in Sector 4 (eastern side of the UN buffer zone) leading a team of 198 Slovak peacekeepers currently deployed in Cyprus.
Lieutenant Colonel Gargalíková graduated from the Slovak School of Armed Forces and continued her studies in the Junior Staff Officer´s Course and Advanced Command and Staff Course at Armed Forces Academy Liptovský Mikuláš in her home country.
She has a distinguished career in the Armed Forces back home, trailblazing as a Senior Officer in several positions since 2005, including as Chief of the 11th Mechanized Battalion.
Lieutenant Colonel Katarína Gargalíková has been employed as the Commanding Officer of the Slovak contingent and sector 4, which stretches for over 60 kilometres of the eastern part of the UN buffer zone, including one of the most sensitive areas of Pyla/Pile and Varosha.
“My responsibilities include de-escalating tensions between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities, preventing military engagement between the two sides, supporting UNPOL in preventing criminal activities inside the buffer zone and supporting UN civilian staff in developing peacebuilding operations,” she explains.
Katarína always keeps an exceptional eye on the situation in the buffer zone. She ensures cross-component integration within her area of responsibility to fulfill the UNFICYP’s operational tasks.
She quickly understood the complexities of peacekeeping in the divided island, and states: “I realized that diplomatic engagement with the opposing forces is the key to success”.