People’s Party Head: Introduce Military Service as per Austrian, Swiss Model

Vuk Jeremic (People's Party photo)

People’s Party leader Vuk Jeremic has said that, in the 21st century, Serbia needs a strong and well-trained army which, given the country’s military neutrality, can only be achieved by introducing a flexible and modern mandatory army service as did Austria and Switzerland.

“For small nations, especially those who face unavoidable security challenges due to their history and geography, seasoned and highly-qualified diplomats are a key weapon, yet such diplomats must be supported by the capacity of their people and state to independently defend themselves should the circumstances so demand,” Jeremic said told the electoral assembly of his party’s municipal chapter in Paracin, held in the evening of on Oct. 9.

The politician went on to say that Serbia “could learn a lot” from Israel, although it is “difficult to compare [Serbia] to Israel in any respect.”

While war rages in the Middle East, the latest violence there is “nothing compared to what could happen in the next few days,” said Jeremic, who is former Serbian minister of foreign affairs and former U.N. General Assembly president.

“In the future, I’d rather Serbia be far more like Israel and far less like Hamas. I’m not sure that this is presently the case, although the Serbs of Kosovo and Metohija are the most endangered people west of the Ukrainian front. I hope to God that the people in Serbia will, like [the people of] Israel one day realize what we can and can’t afford to squabble and divide over. When our people and country are in peril, we must all act as one,” Jeremic said.