Military of Serbia

Serbian Military Serbian: Српска Војска
Service branches	Land Forces Air Force and Air Defense
Headquarters	Belgrade
Leadership
Commander-in-Chief	President Boris Tadić
Minister of Defense	Dragan Šutanovac
Commander of General Staff HQ	Lt. General Zdravko Ponoš
Military age	18
Active personnel	39,000 ranked 79th
Expenditures
Budget	1.08 Billion USD
Percent of GDP	2,02% (2008)
Related articles
History	Military history of Serbia
Ranks	Serbian military ranks and insignia

The Serbian Armed Forces are unified armed force that defend the Republic of Serbia and conducts other missions with respect to the constitution and laws. The Serbian Armed Forces main tasks include:

• Defending Serbia from armed foreign threats.
• Providing support in case of natural disasters and other catastrophes.
• Participating in the process of building and maintaining peace in the region and across the world.

Structure

Transformation

Strategic Defense Review is a project that was established in 2006 by the leading Serbian government officials to advocate modernizing of the Serbian Armed Forces. One of the major pillars of this project is the establishment of an all volunteer armed forces by 2010. In July 2006, a month after the official signing of the bill, a 77% volunteer brigade consisting of 1748 troops was established. Two months after, an unnamed all volunteer "special brigade" consisting of 1300 troops, was officially the first of its kind in Serbia.

Current Structure

The Serbian Army is organized at 3 levels: strategic, operational and tactical. Forces are organized into commands, units and institutions. It is basically constituted of arms, branches, services. The Arms represent integrated branches and services which have relatively limited autonomy in warfare at land, sea and air.

Serbian Armed Forces Organization (click to enlarge)

The Armed Forces of Serbia consist of land, air and training forces.Army branches constitute: the infantry, armored units, artillery, engineering, air defense artillery missile units, aviation, navy, electronic reconnaissance and warfare. Army services can be general and logistics. Logistics services are: technical, procurement, medical, transport, vet, construction, and financial service. The Serbian Air force conduct, intelligence, security, liaison, informatics, nuclear-biological-chemical, air reconnaissance and reporting, geodetic, hydro meteorological and hydro-navigational and legal services. Since Serbia was the dominant partner in the former union with Montenegro, it has inherited the considerable bulk of the army and air force after Montenegro declared independence in 2006. However, as Serbia is landlocked, Montenegro inherited the coastal navy while Serbia was left with a flotilla which protects 3 major rivers in Europe. For more see: River Flotilla of Serbian Armed Forces.

General Staff

General Staff of the Military of Serbia is the highest professional and staff authority for the preparation and use of the military in peace and in war. Chief of General Staff, in accordance with the basis of the organization, formation and development of the military and acts of the President:

• Determined by the organization, development plan and formation commands, units and institutions of military;
• Establishes a plan of recruitment and manning the military and numerous schedule recruits in the military;
• The regulations on training of the military;
• Establishes plans education and training of professional and reserve military leaders;
• Performing other tasks determined by Military law.

Serbian Land Forces

Main article: Serbian Land Forces

The Serbian Land Forces is the largest and the oldest army branch. Its organization, structure, armaments and equipment are tailored to activities conducted predominantly on the ground in its respectively assigned missions and tasks. Mani organization is based on Brigade/Battalion system. Land Forces compose from four land brigades, one combined-arms artillery brigade, and special brigade which is under command of Serbian Army General staff. There are also two military police battalions, NBCW battalion, signal battalion and river flotilla. The land forces brigades are main units of land forces and their duty is to defend their regions. Organization of LF Brigades is very similar, each compose from one command battalion, two infantry battalions, one tank battalion, two mechanized battalions, one self-propelled artillery battalion, one self-propelled rocket artillery battalion, one air defense battalion, one engineer battalion and one logistic battalion. Exclusion is the First LF battalion which have two pontoon instead of one infantry battalion. The combined-arms artillery brigade compose from three howitzer-cannon-artillery battalions, artillery rocket battalion and logistic battalion.

Serbian Air Force and Air Defense

Main article: Serbian Air Force and Air Defense

The Serbian Air Force is the youngest and the most advanced branch encompassing branches and services whose organization, structure, armaments and equipment are tailored to perform combat activities in aerial targets and on the ground. It consists of about 3,000 active personnel and 170 aircraft in 2 main bases, Batajnica and Lađevci. Although largely neglected, the air force is currently begun mass modernization to bring it up to standards. Air force is organized on Air Base/Squadron system, and it consist from two air bases and 7 squadrons and 7 ground units. One fighter squadron is equipped with Soviet-made MiG-21 and MiG-29 fighters, one squadron with domestic J-22 Orao attack aircraft, one squadron with Utva 75 and Super Galeb trainer aircraft, one squadron with Gazelle Gama anti-tank helicopters, one squadron with Mi-8 and Gazelle helicopters and one squadron with An-26 cargo aircraft and Mi-8 transport helicopters. The Air defense is organized like ground forces on Brigade/Battalion system and it consist from one air defense brigade. The main air defense systems are Kub-M and S-125 Neva which will be modernized in next years. There are also one signal battalion, one engineering battalion and Center for Air Reconnaissance. According to a recent update, following improvements were made in over the last 12 month: overhaul of 15 planes, doubled flying hours for pilots, better financial status of pilots,

Modernization

In late 2003, the Serbian Armed Forces began an ambitious task of mass modernization and reorganization of its entire structure. The first step of modernization was reorganizing all units and command structures to reduce the overall size of the army and make it more maneuverable and professional to respond to dangerous situations. This part of the reorganization plan was fully completed in under 13 months. The withdrawal of old and obsolete equipment and procurement of replacements is currently in the process. The Armed Forces are planning to move to a completely professional force and abolish conscription by 2010, operating at international standard (NATO) and participating in UN peacekeeping operations. The existing conscription is very unpopular among young Serbian people and many of them would see it as a violation of their human rights.T-55 tanks and older logistical vehicles are currently in the process for being withdrawn and replaced. The withdrawn T-55s will be put on sale. T-72's will be used for training. A planned modernization of M-84 into M-2001 is also due. M-80A IFV's will be modernized to serve for a prolonged 10 years of service. The military has made plans to announce a tender for 200 8x8 wheel armored vehicles, likely choices are Patria AMV, BTR-90, Mowag Piranha or Pandur.^[1] There are plans to obtain around 24-30 new fighter aircraft to replace the aging MiG-21 fleet which is due to retire around 2010, a tender for a replacement will be called for in 2011 and completed by 2014.^[2] The few Modernized MiG-29s will serve as primary air cover until its replacement is named. Serbia is also designing its own missile/UAV systems. Plans are also being made to obtain new transport helicopters and aircraft as well by 2011. The Air Force will also modernized 15 G-4 Super Galebs to G-4MD standard.

Civil Services

Military of Serbia Јединице (Branches) Land Forces Air Force and Defense

Blood Drive

Serbian Armed Forces have organized a blood donation campaign on 28th of May 2008 in order to boost the supply. According to the words of the head of the Blood Transfusion Institute of Serbia, Snezana Draskovic, in May 2008 the blood supply was below needed quantity. Due to the blood donations of the Serbian Armed Forces the blood supplies have reached the needed amount.^[3]

Philanthropy Directed at the local Albanian Population

KFOR East have congratulated their colleagues from the Serbian Armed Forces on their humanity on several occasions.^[4]

Free Medical Assistance

Medical units of Serbian Armed Forces are providing free medical assistance and water supply in remote Albanian dominate villages of Presevo and Bujanovac municipalities in South Serbia. Military doctors have recently visited villages of Mali Trnovac and Trstena. The reaction of the mayor of Mali Trnovac, Sabri Jukupi, as well as the inhabitants has been positive. For example, the mayor has extended “his gratitude to soldiers of the Serbian Armed Forces ” and has stated that the medicine received has been very important to his family.^[5]

Surgical Emergencies

Lt. Col. Goran Stankovic of the Serbian Armed Forces, states the example from a year and a half ago when a 15-year old boy Jeton Malici from Presevo was helping his father in the woods in cutting down trees and accidentally hurt his leg with a chain saw. His father Skender brought him to the local military base Cvore. Captain I Class Jovica Bosanac provided first aid to the boy and then ordered that a military medical vehicle transport the boy to Presevo. After the boy had recovered, Jeton’s father brought sweets and refreshments for the soldiers and commanders. The members of 78th motorized brigade due to the inaccessibility of the terrain had to dig out 1.1 km long water canal.^[6]

Road Construction

Unit of the 78th motorized brigade are credited for the construction of many roads. For example, the villagers of Muhovac, a remote village that is predominantly Albanian in South Serbia was inaccessible by cars before the 78th motorized brigade built the road. Another project in Trniste municipality where the unit has cleared several kilometers of roads that were mostly inaccessible. The the Serbian Armed Force members have repaired 8 km long road from Bujici to Ranitovac village, which earned them the gratitude of the local Albanian community. In addition, the military has built a road to a local mosque in South Serbia in the village of Ilince.^[7]

Weapons of Mass Destruction

A government embargo ended Yugoslavia's nuclear program in 2003, but a number of facilities capable of supporting a nuclear program remain. The former Yugoslavia's main nuclear institute was the Vinca Institute near Belgrade, and since the dissolution of the republic the appropriation of responsibility remains unclear between the federal level and the Serbian based Vinca Institute.

Peacekeeping operations

Serbia participates in peace operations under the UN auspices either as observers or by donating medical staff. They are deployed in small numbers on a number of United Nations Peace Support missions on the African Continent, including in Burundi, Cote d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Liberia. The Serbian Armed Forces continues its active participation in peacekeeping operations. The mission ONUB in Burundi has ended in 2007.

Current peace keeping missions

• Liberia: (UNMIL) - 6 officers as military observers;
• Côte d'Ivoire: (UNOCI) - 3 officers as military observers;
• Democratic Republic of Congo: (MONUC) - 2 doctor-officers and 4 medical technicians

Republic of Congo

The first Serbian military health corps was sent to this peacekeeping operation in March 2003, and its members are stationed in Kinshasa.

Gallery

See also

• Military of Serbia and Montenegro
• Yugoslav Army (FRY)
• Yugoslav Peoples Army

External links

• Serbian Ministry of Defense
• Official Website

Notes

Serbian Armed Forces Serbian Land Forces • Serbian Air Force and Air Defense

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