BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 23. President of the Republic of Serbia and Supreme Commander of the Serbian Army, Aleksandar Vučić, together with Defense Minister Bratislav Gašić, attended a meeting of the expanded collegium of the Chief of the General Staff today at the “Banjica 2” barracks in Belgrade, Trend reports, citing the country's Defense Ministry.
President Vučić stated that today’s meeting, chaired by the Chief of the General Staff, General Milan Mojsilović, was one of the pivotal and decisive gatherings for upcoming changes in the Serbian Army.
"Our army must become incomparably stronger. Over the past year, indeed over the past ten years but especially the last year, we have done a lot to modernize and advance our army. Today, in the world, law and justice have long ceased to exist, and there are no rules anymore, and we must accept and understand that," said the President of Serbia.
He emphasized that being a member state of the United Nations or having one’s territorial integrity guaranteed by the UN Charter no longer means anything due to the behavior of great powers who "brutally trample on it as needed, inventing non-existent and new principles."
"And we must get used to that. Accordingly, we must raise the level of our defense capabilities. Everything we do—we do it for the citizens of Serbia. It’s not about who is stronger or not, but about the highest interests of the citizens of Serbia, to be protected, safe, and secure," President Vučić stressed.
According to him, the good news is that there has been greater interest in various units than expected, and special units will soon reach over 85% capacity. He noted that this recruitment campaign has been well promoted in the media and added that a certain number of young people will be admitted to drone and anti-drone units, which will also have the status of special units. In addition, he praised the very large number of applicants for pilots at the Military Academy.
"In the next two to three months, you will learn and see everything we have bought and produced. Considering the progress of technology, if the country were attacked by a stronger aggressor today, would it be able to offer incomparably stronger resistance? Those who know best answered that our resistance would be disproportionately or significantly greater than it was in 1999, and some said it would be an absolute deterrent even for the strongest aggressor," Vučić said, announcing a military parade in Serbia in mid-September to mark the Day of Serbian Unity, Freedom, and the National Flag.
The president said it will be the largest military parade ever organized here, with at least 10,000 soldiers participating in various segments, stressing that few countries, especially in Europe, have the capacity "to deploy 10,000 soldiers and showcase their specialties and level of training," explained Vučić.
"We have a good, serious army that still has a lot to do and improve. Today, we decided to adopt the concept of forming a digital army platform. This means integration. Soon, we will have large and powerful unmanned aerial vehicles with wide and long-range vision, and accordingly—everything seen by those vehicles and people on the ground will also be visible in command rooms. You will no longer waste time assessing the situation, reports, dispatches, and so on," he added.
He painted a picture of Serbia as a rising phoenix, destined to soar with one of the mightiest small legions in the realm.
"We will never threaten anyone, but we will know how to protect and defend our country against any potential aggressor," Vučić concluded.
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