Vucic: I will always advocate military neutrality

BELGRADE  - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic says Serbia must develop its army to maintain its sovereignty and military neutrality and announced the country will continue to invest in strengthening its military capabilities.

Speaking to Pink TV on Sunday, Vucic said Serbia's investments in the military kept up with others in the region, making it the most significant military power behind Romania, Hungary and Greece.

"We have Pancirs, FK3s (Chinese-made anti-aircraft defence systems), we are also acquiring some new anti-aircraft defence systems, and we will also build our own capabilities to build Komarac, an important military suicide drone for us," Vucic said.

You must have a strong army if you want sovereignty and military neutrality, he said.

"If you want to join NATO, then there is no need for that. But I will always be an advocate of military neutrality and of protecting our land and skies on our own," he said.

The entire world is investing in arms and military development, Vucic said, noting that Serbia also needed a much stronger army.

"Do you know why there was an outcry about our military presence close to the administrative line (between central Serbia and Kosovo-Metohija)? Not so much because of troop numbers. In December and January last year, we had 14,000 troops there, while now we had just 8,000 troops and they - the entire world - went completely crazy, because we deployed complex combat systems for the first time. And because we knew they (Pristina) are armed with Bayraktar drones and because we also deployed machines that would down them as soon as they take off," Vucic said.

He added that Serbia was a major power when it comes to tanks but was lacking in troop numbers.

Speaking about an initiative to reinstate compulsory military service, Vucic said he first wanted to hear the opinion of his military cabinet.

"It is not a process that could be completed in one, two or three months. We must prepare barracks and see if it (compulsory military service) will last 100 or 120 days, and how to do and modernise that," he said.