Serbia Bids Goodbye To Conscript Army

Parliament is expected on Thursday to discuss government proposals to abolish compulsory military conscription and introduce greater professionalisation of the army.

The obligation to serve in the Army of Serbia is set to end on January 1, 2011. By mid 2011, the last soldiers mobilised in 2010 will have completed their term of service. The plan is for some 10,600 professional soldiers to take their places.

A media campaign has meanwhile been launched to encourage Serbs under the age of 30 to join up and become professional soldiers. Adverts depict the armed forces as an institution that offers secure jobs, a regular income, social and health care as well as access to a variety of self-improvement courses.

The defence ministry said that it was satisfied with the number of candidates applying to be career soldiers. "There are four or five people competing for every vacancy," a ministry official told Balkan Insight.

According to a survey which the ministry carried out among conscripts who joined the army in September, two-thirds have expressed interest in becoming professional soldiers once they finish compulsory military conscription.

The transition to a professional army, however, does not mean that military conscription will never be restored in Serbia. Young men, when they reach 18, will still be enrolled in the military records. "In case of imminent danger, or war, parliament will be able to reactivate compulsory military conscription," the ministry official said.