Joint Tactical Exercise “Slavic Shield 2019” Finished
Monday, 28.10.2019 | Training
Minister Vulin: We are bound by firm commitment to defend our freedom
— Joint Tactical Exercise “Slovenski štit 2019” (“Slavic Shield 2019”) is going to become traditional and in the future, we will practice together and learn how to protect the freedom of our skies. The name of the exercise, “Slavonic Shield”, speaks of our closeness, speaks of common origins, speaks of the shared values. But more than our common origins, more than our common past, we are bound by a common future, we are bound by a firm commitment to defend our freedom — said Minister of Defense Aleksandar Vulin, in the presence of Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces, General Milan Mojsilović, at a medal awarding ceremony that marked the end of the Joint Tactical Exercise with live firing of the Rocket units of the Air Defense of the Serbian Armed Forces and the Russian Aerospace Forces.
Slavonic nations, Minister Vulin added, do not take from others, because they were taught that way and because they have chosen that way.
— That is how our ancestors used to do it, and that is how we will do it too. In the wars she never sought, in the wars she never provoked, Serbia has learned the cost of her freedom. That is why we prepare, exercise, equip, not to endanger anyone, but never to allow anyone to jeopardize our freedom. After acquiring new knowledge, new skills, after equipping and after the “Slavonic Shield”, Serbia stands even more ready to remain free and to maintain peace in the Balkans — Minister Vulin emphasized.
According to him, the more prepared and armed Serbia is, the more secure, certain and lasting peace in the Balkans is.
— I would like to thank President Vladimir Putin and President Aleksandar Vučiću, as it is due to their agreement, thanks to their persistent and patient work, that Serbia and Russia are closer and our countries stronger and freer. Thanks to President Vučić’s policy, military neutrality policy Serbia is not alone; Serbia will never be alone again, as in 1999, when it was exposed to the NATO aggression, at the darkest moment of our history, when we were completely alone. Thanks to the policy of military neutrality, we can arm ourselves, equip ourselves, we can choose for ourselves who our friends are, and our enemies declare themselves anyway, without our wish or desire — said Minister Vulin.
Commandant of the “Slavic Shield 2019” Exercise, Commander of the 250th Rocket Brigade of the Air Force and Air Defence, Brigadier General Tiosav Janković stressed that today, when the Joint Tactical Exercise is ending, that it can be concluded that the goals have been met and tasks accomplished.
— The exercise, which was only outlined in May, has assumed clear form and rich content today, it is recognizable and visible to all. We can be proud of this joint venture of ours and our Russian colleagues’; and it commits us to further enrich our cooperation over the following period with new exercises and new activities. All of you who participated in the planning, preparation and implementation of this exercise, who assisted in a visible or invisible manner, I thank you today. I wish my Russian colleagues a successful and safe return to their homeland, with the desire to see each other as soon as possible in some similar activity — General Janković said.
Addressing the participants in the Exercise, Deputy Commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces, Lieutenant General Yuri Nikolaevich Grekhov, stressed that this was an important day for the members of the Serbian Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, as the first Joint Air Defense Exercise at the territory of Serbia was successfully completed. He wished the participants and commanders the best of luck, health and a safe return to their country to members of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
The Minister of Defense of the Republic of Serbia awarded Military Commemorative Medals for outstanding contribution to the defense system of the Republic of Serbia, which he presented at the ceremony today to the members of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, for achieving exceptional results at the Joint Tactical Exercise “Slavic Shield 2019”.
On the occasion of successful completion of the Exercise, the Commandant of the Air Force and Air Defense, Major General Duško Žarković, awarded Certificates of appreciation to the members of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation at today’s ceremony.
At today’s ceremony at the “Pukovnik-pilot Milenko Pavlović” (“Colonel-pilot Milenko Pavlović”) Airport in Batajnica, decorations and Certificates of appreciation in line with the order of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation and Commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces were presented for merits in the Joint Tactical Exercise “Slovensko bratstvo 2019” (“Slavic Brotherhood 2019”) and awarded to the members of the Serbian Armed Forces by General Grekhov.
