24.07.2020.

Fifty-six new SUVs for the Serbian Armed Forces

Minister Vulin: Safer vehicles for members of the armed forces

The Minister of Defence Aleksandar Vulin and the Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, General Milan Mojsilović attended today the presentation of the newly purchased UAZ “Patriot” SUVs intended for the units of the Serbian Armed Forces on the “Utva“ factory grounds in Pančevo. In addition to the 56 vehicles presented today, it is planned to purchase eight more vehicles by the end of October. The Serbian Armed Forces were last equipped with vehicles of this type in 2006.

As Minister Vulin pointed out after the visit, these are non-combat passenger SUVs, intended for the Military Police, Army units and everyday use of all our members.

- We can finally say that we have new vehicles that will be safer for all our members and that we have started renewing Army’s car pool. We have started purchasing vehicles that are necessary for everyday life and work of all our members, especially those who go to rough terrains, in some forward areas, in the Ground Security Zone, in all those places that require a safe vehicle that can be driven on rough terrain, in all types of weather. We also thought about the quality-price ratio, the size of our budget, but also about the needs of our armed forces. Every segment of our armed forces deserves to be renewed, to be taken care of equally – Minister Vulin emphasized.

The Minister of Defence and the Chief of the General Staff were briefed about the technical characteristics of the vehicles, and after the presentation of the vehicles, driving with emergency lights and sirens on was demonstrated.

Head of the Traffic and Transport Section of the Logistics Department of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, Colonel Dragiša Zinaja, said that today, the assessment of readiness of UAZ “Patriot” vehicles for delivery to the Serbian Armed Forces was shown.

- The main purpose of these vehicles is to increase the mobility of the Serbian Armed Forces’ units, and besides that, they also contribute to the safety of military road traffic, the improvement of the general resupply of the Serbian Armed Forces and the reduction of the average vehicle age of this class of vehicles in the units of the Serbian Armed Forces – said Colonel Zinaja. He also pointed out that the vehicles are equipped with devices for increased off-road capability and that in addition to the four-wheel drive, there is the possibility of locking the rear differential and driving the vehicles in slow-speed gears.

Colonel Vladimir Ušljebrka from the Military Police Department of the General Staff talked about the procurement of SUVs for the needs of the Military Police units.

- The procured SUVs will be distributed to battalions, companies and platoons and they will be used to carry out military-police tasks such as providing protection to certain persons and foreign military delegations, providing traffic security for military convoys and the transport of hazardous materials, military road traffic control, traffic reconnaissance, providing assistance to the Traffic Police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in accordance with the law, as well as for operational-investigative activities, patrol service and other tasks of the Military Police - said Colonel Ušljebrka and added that with this procurement, the state of the Military Police units is significantly improved and operational capabilities increased.

UAZ “Patriot“ is a Russian SUV with a four-wheel drive used by the Russian and Belarusian armed forces.

The presentation of the new vehicles was attended by the State Secretary Bojan Jocić, Head of the Operations Department, Major General Želimir Glišović, Head of the Military Police Department, Brigadier General Rajko Milovanović and Head of the Development and Equipping Department, Brigadier General Milan Popović.