26.12.2021.
Minister Stefanović: Malicious words that some people say about the Serbian Armed Forces could not be further from the truth
Statement by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Nebojša Stefanović, PhD:
“I am happy and proud that our soldiers, NCOs and officers will celebrate New Year and Christmas with higher salaries, that today they can afford a decent life for their children and families and a roof over their heads and that the Serbian Armed Forces are getting stronger and better equipped every day. I am happy that Serbia is a neutral, independent and free country, where its citizens feel safe today, thanks to the strong armed forces.
As I am really proud of our armed forces and all the service members and as I love my country very much, I am always shocked when I read various texts and political propaganda coming from the Serbian people, and particularly from the defence system personnel, who are making every effort not to say anything good about the Serbian Armed Forces, and they often say really bad things, even though they know that the words they are saying could not be further from the truth.
The third salary increase in the last 14 months, amounting to 8%, which the soldiers have been receiving since January, after the 17% pay rise they have received so far, is not to be underestimated, and it is considerably higher than many other categories in our society. The government, led by the President of the Republic and the Supreme Commander of the Serbian Armed Forces Aleksandar Vučić, has done everything, recognized how important and difficult our soldiers’ profession is and provided the highest salary increases for them. Of course, that is still not enough, nor is it ideal, but it is certainly much better than in the period when military salaries barely amounted to the minimum wage.
Insults and maliciously distorted facts, often spoken with a hint of regret that the country and the armed forces are not governed by those who governed them from 2000-2012 and left them in an appalling state, are uttered by someone who was a member of the same armed forces when 30,000 people left them during the ten-year rule of the former government and when the average salary was miserable and shameful, when soldiers did not even have a decent meal, or a decent uniform, when the armed forces did not even have a pair of fighters on duty, because we did not have another aircraft to make the "pair". But no matter how hard they try, they cannot hide the fact that today soldiers have incomparably better working conditions, that we have 14 MiG 29s, helicopters and other state-of-the-art equipment and weapons, that our industry can equip our armed forces by relying on the intelligence of our engineers, whom we employ today, and who were wrongfully dismissed in the previous period.
Unfortunately, such politicians, whose only motive is personal interest, do not understand that what motivates our brave soldiers is love for the fatherland. That is why people are most important to us; they are the ones who make the armed forces strong, despite all the weapons, tanks and aircraft that we have been procuring. That is why we make sure that our soldiers can buy apartments, feed their children and lead a decent life with their families which they could not, when they were taken care of by those who criticize the armed forces most heavily today.
People have been and will always be the priority of the President of Serbia and the Ministry of Defence, because unlike those before us, we recognize the personnel’s dedication and commitment and we strive to make our armed forces proud and strong, because only then can they guarantee a strong Serbia."
