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Serbia will spend around 740 million euros this year alone on the purchase of military equipment and armaments, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Saturday at a press conference at the Military Security Agency.
The Serbian leader made these comments only two days after the United States accepted a request from Kosovo for the purchase of Javelin anti-tank missiles, which will be reviewed by the American Congress. "Serbia currently has 186 million euros available, which we will spend immediately on the purchase of tools and weapons from the local factories of the dedicated industry," said Vucic.
He announced that during this year two more packages of 150 and 400 million euros will be ready for additional equipment and armament of the Armed Forces of Serbia. That money has been allocated in addition to the 360 million euros allocated in Serbia's budget for additional armaments, Vucic said.
"When you put all this together, you will see that this will be the year in which we will equip ourselves better, faster and more powerfully," said Vucic.
Speaking about the US decision to sell Kosovo 246 US-made anti-tank missiles, as well as tracking equipment, Vučić said that this move is contrary to Resolution 1244, which, he added, does not provide for Kosovo to have army.
"According to Resolution 1244, there cannot be any group of armed Kosovar Albanians, and they created an army for them and continue to create it. Are we strong like America, England, Germany, Turkey - we are not. But we can show the whole world that this brutally violates international legal norms", said Vucic.
Earlier, on January 11, the president expressed "great disappointment" with the US announcement that it approved Pristina's request for the purchase of Javelin missiles, after the decision was announced to him by the American ambassador in Belgrade, Christopher Hill.
Kosovo has also in the past bought or received weapons from the United States as a donation.
After the changes were approved in the Assembly of Kosovo in 2018, the then Government signed a contract with the American company, AM General, to equip the Kosovo Security Force (FSK) with 51 Humvee-type vehicles.
Two years later, Kosovo also bought other military vehicles from the USA, while in 2021, the American Government donated 55 ASV (Armored Security Vehicle) vehicles to Kosovo.
The government of Kosovo has also approved a decision for the purchase of American drones, while the Kosovar authorities have warned that the future army will also be equipped with helicopters.
In 2028, when the KSF is expected to transform into an army, it is expected to reach all operational capacities for, as it has been said, "the preservation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kosovo, as well as the citizens, property and interests of the country" .
KSF currently has around 2,500 members. After the transition period, this number is expected to increase to over 7,500 and include active and reservist members.
The budget for this year of the Ministry of Defense of Kosovo is in the amount of 153,049,911 euros./REL
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