Serbian President proposes reintroducing compulsory military service
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, during his official address to the public, said that he proposes to introduce compulsory military service in Serbia, which will last 90 days.
He added that the competent military authorities should assess how much it would cost the country, and parliament should accept or reject the proposal after a long and serious discussion.
“As the supreme military commander, I do not want to accept the excuse from the army that we do not have enough trained personnel,” Vucic emphasized.
“Every man can devote 90 days to his country, that is, not 365 days, or even six months of his life. There are NATO countries around us, or we have a NATO presence, there is no territory where this bloc is not in our surroundings,” Vucic said.
Serbian Defense Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic, after the country’s leader’s statement, said that the department and the Serbian army have formed working groups that analyze the assigned task.
“I expect that in the next two weeks we will have a plan with a full analysis and better decisions from the point of view of the financial aspect, the training aspect and the hiring aspect,” says the minister
At the same time, as the department’s press service reported, the minister’s personal position on this issue has been known for a long time.
“As President Vučić said, Serbia is a militarily neutral country, and therefore I believe that it should have compulsory military service, like Austria and Switzerland. Its introduction, first of all, will strengthen the defense capability of our country,” Stefanovich said.
The minister noted that it is important for young people to undergo training in military skills and become familiar with the complex combat systems and other modern equipment and weapons that the Serbian army has, which Serbia could not boast of in previous decades.
Stefanovic also stated that young people will not only be trained after military service so that they can come to the aid of their relatives at any time, but also give them the opportunity to acquire skills and knowledge that will mean something to them in life, and at work.
“Of course, the final decision will be made by parliament, but I am deeply convinced both as the Minister of Defense and as a person who has served in the military that this is extremely useful for young people and our country,” Stefanovic concluded.
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