16.04.2025.
2024 Best Research Project/PhD Thesis Awards in Ministry of Defence, Serbian Armed Forces presented
The annual awards ceremony for the recipients of the 2024 Best Research Project Award and Best PhD Thesis Award in the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces was held today at Belgrade’s Central Military Club.
The awards are given on the occasion of the Serbian Armed Forces Day, with the aim of promoting research work and researchers in the defence system. This year, the awards were presented by the Rector of the Defence University, Brigadier General Prof. Boban Đorović, Ph.D.
The project entitled "Structural, Functional and Molecular Aspects of Cell and Tissue Repair Potential in Physiological and Pathophysiological Conditions", headed by Prof. Milica Ninković, M.D-Ph.D., from the Medical Faculty of the Military Medical Academy, was declared the best research project, while the paper entitled "Classification of Drones in the Radio Frequency Domain Using Deep Learning Algorithms" by Lieutenant Colonel Boban Sazdić-Jotić, Ph.D., from the Military Technical Institute, was declared the best PhD thesis.
General Đorović expressing delight at the fact that this year’s award winners were members of the teaching staff at the Defence University and congratulated the professors and their teams on their success. The rector thanked the award winners for their contribution to the development of science in the defence system and the reputation of the Defence University, the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces, as well as to our society as a whole.
- The ceremony we are holding today in anticipation of the Serbian Armed Forces Day, is a way for the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces to recognize scientific knowledge that our colleagues possess, create and deliver to the Ministry of Defence. What is necessary for science to function in any scientific research organization or system, such as the defence system, is the ability to achieve outstanding scientific results, which requires years of persistent work, maturity, wisdom, patience and discipline. What is also necessary is the ability to nurture and develop young scientists - emphasized General Đorović, adding that the Strategic Planning Department of the Defence Policy Sector had come up with an excellent idea that annual awards should be given for the best research project and the best PhD thesis, thus stimulating the aforementioned abilities of the defence system.According to the chair of the Annual Awards Committee, Colonel Dejan Stojković, Ph.D, Head of the Strategic Planning Department, Defence Policy Sector, both research papers are of exceptional importance for the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces.
- The results of one of the research projects can be successfully used to improve the service members’ attention, concentration and mental endurance, as well as their overall psychophysical abilities. The research results can also be used in the military pilot selection process, which can be extremely important for the operational capabilities of the armed forces and other defence forces. The award-winning PhD thesis deals with the application of artificial intelligence, i.e. deep learning algorithms, in the classification of drones in the radio-frequency domain and their implementation in counter-drone systems and other unmanned aerial platforms, which can also be extremely important for the protection of troops in a modern operational environment - said Colonel Stojković, emphasizing that “the award winners’ success clearly indicates that the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces have a great potential for outstanding scientific achievements”.
As part of the award ceremony, work results achieved by the units of the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces dealing with scientific research were showcased in the form of presentations, publications and exhibits.The ceremony was attended by members of the Defence Minister’s and the Chief of the General Staff’s respective collegiums, representatives of the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation, members of the Ministry of Defence and the Serbian Armed Forces and numerous guests.
