09.12.2017.

New FAP trucks for the Serbian Armed Forces

Minister of Defence Aleksandar Vulin and Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces Ljubiša Diković attended the official handover of new vehicles of the Priboj-based FAP Corporation a.d. together with their associates, where they were welcomed by General Manager Ranko Vuković, head of the Zlatibor District, Dimitrije Paunović, President of the Municipality of Priboj, Lazar Rvović, and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of FAP Corporation a.d. Nemanja Stevanović. The direct reason for the visit was the handover of ten new FAP 1118 freight vehicles, which mark the start, after several decades, of renewing the vehicle fleet with high-quality freight vehicles of the once world-renowned bus and truck factory.

Thanking President Aleksandar Vučić who believed in FAP and workers who believed in their management and state leadership, Minister of Defence Aleksandar Vulin emphasized:

- When nobody believed in FAP, the president of the Republic said that FAP would work and it works. Today, the military received ten high-quality vehicles, test-proven in various weather and terrain conditions, trucks which are part of an agreement worth RSD 299,460,000. We have shown that our expertise and our knowledge are capable of making the machinery we need. The Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces have always opted for purchasing local products. Each investment in the Serbian Armed Forces is an investment in local production, investment in our Serbia. Each investment in the Armed Forces is an investment in the development of our technology, the employment of our people and the engagement of our expertise. The Serbian Armed Forces will act in accordance with the order of the Supreme Commander who said at the last report that we must make the military strong, satisfied, technologically modern, equipped. Everything we do is intended for developing our economy, buying as many new vehicles as possible and developing technology that will enable the Armed Forces to fulfill all its tasks, Minister Vulin said.

Stressing that strategic orientation of the SAF was to fill out its vehicle fleet with all-terrain vehicles made in Serbia, primarily by FAP and Zastava Kamioni, Chief of General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces General Ljubiša Diković said:

- The needs of the SAF are such that the delivery of several hundred vehicles of this type has been secured. The vehicles we received today absolutely meet our needs and are characterized by great passability, resilience and strength. They have been test-proven in all weather conditions – General Diković pointed out.

- Returning FAP Corporation to life, returns to life Priboj and the entire region as well. Because FAP is not just Priboj, FAP is Sjenica and Nova Varoš and the entire Zlatibor district; there are numerous sub-contractors and people who make their living working in the Priboj-based corporation. For people in Priboj, primarily for those employed in FAP and their families, and then for all of us in the region, cooperation with the SAF means the beginning of a better future, a new hope for the region and Serbia, head of Zlatibor District Dimitrije Paunović said, whilePresident of the Municipality Lazar Rvović pointed out the great help of the state in writing off a portion of FAP debts.

- Thanks to great efforts made by the state, primarily President Aleksandar Vučić and the Serbian Government, who have emphasized the preservation of FAP and the production of trucks as a strategic commitment, we can say today that our debt has been reduced by more than EUR 100 million. We have been given an opportunity we need to use. By initiating production with the help of the SAF, we have given a breath of life to the town and its wider area – Rvović said.

Thanking the Minister of Defence and the Chief of General Staff, Chairman of the Supervisory Board FAP Nemanja Stevanović pointed out that as early as in 2013, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, as the First Deputy Prime Minister, recognised the strategic importance of FAP also for the region and as an industrial base for this type of production for the whole country. The best days of FAP are just ahead of us, especially if we take into account the upcoming cooperation with the military and the quality of our products, Stevanović said.