05.01.2021.
Minister Stefanović on compulsory military service
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Nebojša Stefanović, PhD, pointed out today that the topic of compulsory military service was important for our country and that the state intended to discuss it maturely and seriously in professional circles and, of course, to let citizens state their opinions.
“The armed forces are the guarantor of our country’s stability and security, and the stronger the Serbian Armed Forces are, the stronger Serbia is. We want to show utmost respect for our soldiers, non-commissioned officers and officers, for their day and night engagement in protecting our country and its sky. We want to show how much we appreciate their profession and how much our people support them," said the Minister of Defence.
He emphasized that was exactly why President Vučić, the Government and the Ministry were doing everything for soldiers to be well equipped and paid and feel that they had their state’s support.
“Compulsory military service has raised a storm of public criticism and debate, but we think that this issue should be debated by professionals. I personally support this idea because I believe that in this way our armed forces will be stronger and more efficient. It is important to distinguish between professional soldiers whose number will not decrease, but on the contrary, we intend to increase it, and compulsory military service which will give young people the opportunity to support their homeland and show that they can also be its soldiers. In this way we are actively building the reserve force”, said Stefanović.
He also noted that the only way to create the reserve force is by reintroducing compulsory military service and that this was what had been missing in the past ten years.
“What is important is that such a decision has not yet been made, because we want to discuss it maturely and seriously in professional circles, and we want the citizens of Serbia to state their opinions about it via the National Assembly," said Stefanović.
